Steve Bellah's illustration based on a historic photograph.
UPPER LAKE, Calif. – Lake County Wine Studio is hosting a wine tasting event with Beaver Creek Vineyards and a double artist billing with painter, Ruthie Martin and illustrator, Steve Bellah on Friday, Nov. 5, from 5 p.m. to 8 p.m., and Saturday, Nov. 6, from 4 p.m. to 7 p.m.
Musical guests during the reception evenings are Tim Dolan and Anita Blu.
Beaver Creek is a biodynamic vineyard located on the historic Horne Ranch property at the southern end of Lake County in Middletown.
Sheep and goats graze and fertilize the certified organic vineyards, the grapes are harvested by hand and the winemaking process is completely natural.
Using natural yeast and aging the wines in French, Hungarian and American Oaks, winemakers Martin Pohl and Bruno Kolias strive to produce unfiltered wines of the cleanest, purest quality.
The $10 wine sampler with paired appetizers will include the 2009 Lake County Sauvignon Blanc, 2009 Horne Ranch Sauvignon Blanc, 2007 Zinfandel, 2007 Petite Syrah and 2007 Cabernet Sauvignon.
Ruthie Martin is a self-taught artist and fiction writer who has been drawing and painting since her earliest childhood memories.
Encouraged by her mother, she developed an appreciation for the wonders of nature and to paint her own interpretations. Fascinated with landscapes, trees and palm trees in particular are often the subjects found in her serene creations.
Martin has a home in Lake County and is the owner and chief executive officer of Urban Tree Farm Nursery Inc. in the Sonoma County town of Fulton. She credits great employees that enable her to spend time in pursuit of artistic creations and work on her current novel. In 2011 she will be studying with renowned artist, Thomas Creed of Windsor.
One of Ruthie Martin's still lifes.
Steve J. Bellah’s artistic education began at an early age and continued throughout his educational years, participating in competitions and garnering awards along the way.
With college came advanced art studies. Bellah was the editorial cartoonist for the local student newspaper and later provided cartoons for the American Medical Magazine. Those assignments kindled his passion to create illustrations in pencil.
Intrigued by the illustrations of Paul Calle, an artist who depicted many drawings representing the NASA Space Program in the early 1970s, Bellah began to produce several drawings of President Lincoln and the Civil War era that were purchased by the Lincoln Savings and Loan institution.
As a land surveyor, Bellah has produced several historical drawings within this line of work, including building unique hand-crafted frames.
Upon moving to Lake County, he was fascinated by its magnificent history and was inspired to create several drawings from the early era. Those drawings represent Lake County's famous resorts and the means travelers took to get there.
Bellah is currently in the process of collecting ideas for future illustrations. For more information, please visit his Web site at www.illustrationsinpencil.com .
Tim Dolan and Anita Blu will serve up some sweet, upbeat harmonies accompanied by Dolan’s acoustic guitar. Everything from Sam Cooke to Crosby, Stills, Nash and Young with some Emmylou Harris and Beatles along the way, their musical contribution to the reception evenings are certain to delight and take the chill off of the autumn nights.
Lake County Wine Studio is located on the corner of First and Main Streets in historic Upper Lake, across from the famous Tallman Hotel and Blue Wing Saloon & Café.
For more information, call Susan Feiler at 707-275-8030 or 707-293-8752.
Tim Dolan and Anita Blu will entertain at the Lake County Wine Studio on Friday, November 5, and Saturday, November 6, 2010. Courtesy photo.
