Fish gotta swim, birds gotta fly, Ruth gotta draw
Ruth Hussey has been in this blog before, when we went to Stockton so she could get an award for one of her pastels.
We were in Pleasanton tonight for an opening at the Harrington Gallery of a pastel show consisting of just 5 artists, Ruth among them.
The Harrington Gallery in the Firehouse arts complex, Pleasanton
The Harrington is a public gallery housed in the Firehouse Arts complex, a renovated firehouse which now contains both the gallery and a theater. I don’t know how big their mailing list is, but the turnout for the show was exceptional, and I’m pretty sure they weren’t all there for the free broccoli and dip–the art was excellent.
Remember, just because the medium is called ‘pastel’ doesn’t mean it’s all weak, milky colors.
Olivina Sunset, by Debbie Wardrope
Pastel is a type of crayon, you can do anything you want with it.
So colorful it's pushing up towards surrealism. Blue and Gold, by Pat Suggs.
Ruth isn’t usually quite so vibrant, but she has her moments:
I looked at the name of this 3 times, and it just wouldn't stay in my head.
A quieter piece, showing tremendous versatility and technique in the details and the shading.
Ruth draws the art, her husband Bob is in charge of framing. They’re quite a team, entering shows and contests all over the country. They’ve been married over 60 years, and Bob remains in awe of Ruth’s talent, and tells of going to work when they were first married and coming home to find Ruth still in her nightdress, sitting up in bed and drawing. She was so completely focused on her art the entire day had passed and she hadn’t noticed. A lifetime later and she is still as involved, still as driven, still as talented.
She’s also still the best looking woman of her age in the country. That Bob is a lucky guy.
Totally Unauthorized 