Last fall, we moved to Geyserville. We hadn’t thought of it as moving to a senior community; but, in some ways, it really is conducive to a more mature living location. I have gray hair coming in, so that qualifies, right?

Before living here full time, Geyserville was a place to visit for a few restaurants. (Sh…. Best kept secret… where the locals go. Geyserville Inn, also known as the Hoffman House) has a great restaurant, and there’s no waiting to be seated, no lines out the door. I seem to see the Pedroncelli family most times we’re there, for instance. It’s a great, relaxed atmosphere with generous, delicious dishes.

I’ll be writing abut the wines in this area; but first, I’d like to write about the town’s culture… Art is really important to the locals, so much so that there’s a Sculpture Trail from Geyserville to Cloverdale. As you enter Geyserville from the south, and you make that left-hand turn into town, an open field begins the trail. Many of the objects have come from past Burning Man events, for instance.

[FOREGROUND ARTWORK: Tulip by Adrian Litman ~ Sponsor: Joel & Kathy Zunino]

The field of large, metal sculpture is a stopping point for most new people arriving. It sort of reminds me of Napa Valley from both the north and the southern ends of the valley, when we see visitors gather under the welcome signs. We don’t have a welcome sign in the field, but we do have art that makes you want to just stop and have a closer look.

From the Sculpture Trail from Geyserville to Cloverdale Website:

3,000 American adults over the age of 18 in December 2016 participated in an Americans for Arts’ Public Opinion Poll.

• 63 percent of the people polled believe the arts “lift me up beyond everyday experiences”
• 64 percent feel the arts give them “pure pleasure to experience and participate in”
• 73 percent say the arts are a “positive experience in a troubled world.”

[ARTWORK: Shimmer by Phillip Lynch ~ Sponsor: Bryce Jones]

We’re very fortunate to the have the Sculpture Trail in both Geyserville and into Cloverdale. Again, from the site:

The Geyserville Community Foundation, with support from Geyserville Chamber, and the Cloverdale Historical Society produce the Sculpture Trail. The Trail is an outdoor art exhibit of sculptures in the Northern Sonoma County communities of Geyserville and Cloverdale in the Sonoma County Wine Country. The Sculpture Trail is a year-round exhibit with sculptures changing every 12 months.

When I was hired to work as a publicist for Enoforum wines from Portugal, and visited this amazing country, I began not by focusing on the wines. Instead, I focused on the the history, the arts, the businesses, and then the wines. The Wines of Portugal ~ First you must understand the people.

This project will be driven by the first three above (history, the arts, the businesses). I need to begin, in our own community, to better understand where I am at this point in my life and career in Geyserville. The wines will follow. For now, I’m beginning with the arts and their supporters.

This link to the artwork is a fun place to start, anyway. Please do take a quick look. It’s really fun art. I’ll be adding my own images, as I go along. For now, this is just an introduction to my on-going series. The sculptures are for sale, by the way. Check out the Sculpture Trail from Geyserville to Cloverdale Website (link above).

There’s a giant pig at Soda Rock Winery, which was purchased from the field. I miss it. However, when we take 128 to get to Napa, there it is in Healdsburg on CA Route 128.

Burning Man: Sonoma man’s art is nothing to ‘snort’ at by DAVID TEMPLETON, INDEX-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER | August 22, 2016

“All by myself,” says artist-sculptor Bryan Tedrick, of Glen Ellen. “That’s how I like to work. Just me and the metal – and the idea.” Built out of steel, standing 20-feet tall and 30-feet wide, the massive sculpture resembles a gigantic mechanical boar. Tedrick has whimsically dubbed his creation Lord Snort.

My connection to all of the artwork is Victoria Heiges, who lives in my neighborhood. This is my introduction. Stay tuned for more details!

I’m going to end with this one, because in a slight wind, it’s very magical.