Leslie Toms’ business card tells you a lot about her as a painter.
It’s a 2.5-by-2.5-inch square—an unusual size and shape, but that makes the card stand out. The front features a high-gloss image of two sunflowers in a vase with her name printed across the bottom in bright red letters. The colors are so vibrant that you can’t help but stare. The card is the epitome of Toms’ artistic style: a little different, a lot colorful and always pleasing to the eye.
Gerald Walburg is a gentle, unassuming man with an extremely large perspective on life. His multiple homes, backyard art studios and sophisticated gardens are proof. But nothing conveys this man’s vast talent for great endeavors more than his art—his really big art. Examples include the 40-foot-tall corten steel “Indo Arch,” installed in 1980 outside of Macy’s on the K Street Mall, and a striking bronze sculpture at the entrance of the Crocker Art Museum. While art lovers can access Walburg’s public creations at any time, the community now has the opportunity to view his private collection during this year’s Urban Renaissance Home Tour on Sunday, Sept. 23.
It was our first visit to our son’s new townhouse. Kurt and his girlfriend Shelly had purchased a strawberry pot, filled its little openings with blue lobelia, scarlet salvia and white alyssum, and put it on the front stoop. The plants were drooping woefully in the blazing sunlight. As soon as Kurt and Shelly opened the door, I blurted, “These plants need water now!” I tried, more diplomatically, to explain that their roots needed more soil and space to grow, and it would be very hard to keep them moist enough to survive in that pot. In my heart, I was lamenting that they were making the same mistakes I made when I began gardening. Why didn’t they consult me, the Master Gardener in the family? Does each generation need to repeat the last’s gardening goofs?
Jonathon Lowe is a Sacramento artist who specializes in portraits and figures. His cover artwork was awarded the 2018 Inside Publisher’s Award at the California State Fair Fine Art Competition. Shown: “Negai,” oil on canvas. Visit jonathandavidlowe.com.
Andrew Hindeman is a Sacramento artist creating calm and peaceful paintings, yet he strives for his work to feel alive and command attention. Shown: “Living Water,” oil on canvas. Visit ahindman.com.
