I had the feeling that I was experiencing an important, pivotal moment in my art career as I listened to and watched Milford Zornes at one of his workshops. I even wrote in my sketchbook, "in awe, living history."

He talked about the "artist" vs "the painter," and shared that he preferred "painter" over artist. Later I realized that me meant that we as painters are always learning; artists feel they have already reached their goal.

He said that painting is a pattern on a 2-D surface and that all art is abstract if its art. He was concerned about "readability," identification of what it is and what it means. Design is the basic form of the picture, like a story in a novel or theme in music.

"Look at what (Half Dome) says, it rises from the valley, so say this in your painting."

He said, "Don't stay too long at the scene. Take away the values and the colors. Painting is a game of contrasts through dark and light, neutral vs pure color, complementary colors, warm vs cool, texture.

"One line can tell the whole story." he called this 'story line.' He used a line that started at the top and weaved through the painting vertically. He wanted the felling of escaping the picture plane, going beyond.

All the rest of the lines are developing lines (subordinate.) He said, "Base a painting on a good line. From there you can develop value and color."

"Line is the true abstract symbol. Horizontal for foundation, vertical for supporting, angular for bracing, curved for decorative."

He wanted us to think about why we chose our lines. I wrote down horizontal for sound, curves for direction, angles for mischief.

He urged us to always DRAW! Look, study, (trees, rocks, etc).

He mixed his colors on the paper, letting them mingle on their own rather than mixing them on the palette.

"Colors live in the shadows. If a shape is warm, keep it warm throughout. Use warm greens because trees are living matter."

He talked about the 'bead' on the edges of a wash so the wet paint can be brought down the page before it dries. I teach this technique to my students, a basic confidence builder.

His tree shapes were treated as one shape, not as single trees. He told us to look at the big mass first, and to create a variety of space divisions. His shapes had purpose and meaning, and his colors were bold.

How did Jean and Phil Warren get involved with the Marin Mammal Center? Jean says, "Some years ago, Phil and I went on a whale/wildlife boat trip with the Point Reyes Association to Cordell Bank, 20 miles out to sea from Bodega Bay. On board were two marine biologists from The Marine Mammal Center who got excited about the sea lions and whales that we were observing that day. We told them that we were interested in volunteering somehow and they said that they really needed ‘stranding’ volunteers in our area, which now includes Point Reyes to Fort Ross."

Jean's artwork can be viewed at Bodega Bay Heritage Gallery as well as her website JeanWarren.com. And, if you keep an eye on the beaches in and around Bodega Bay, you may see Jean and Phil strolling, cleaning up, and keeping a watchful eye on our wildlife.

After the Great Depression and WW II, Carmel was on the rise. With the popularity of the novel John Steinbeck's Cannery Row, literary fans came to Monterey seeking the flavor of the novel's settings and characters.

The seaside village with its working wharf was transforming from being the home of pungent and dingy fish canneries into a scenic seaside destination boasting the best of the California Coast.

While working as a painter in Carmel Highlands, Josh maintained his career as Director of Animation Effects for the Disney Studios. He kept an LA apartment near the studio which he used while working on special projects at the Disney Studios.

One of the highlights of Josh's animation work came in 1956. Walt Disney was approached by MGM Studios for assistance in making their science fiction film Forbidden Planet. Walt was intrigued by the project and loaned Joshua Meador's services to MGM for the project. The film features some of Josh's most creative film work for which he is well known as a pioneer in animation and science fiction film making.

Two major Disney projects done during Josh's Carmel years were 1959's Darby O'Gill and the Little People and 1958's Sleeping Beauty. Darby O'Gill is noted for its mixing of animated and live characters in a single scene. This was one of Joshua Meador's specialties which he later put to work in Mary Poppins.

Sleeping Beauty was the film in which Josh created "fairy dust." The 1958 Walt Disney short film, Four Artists Paint 1 Tree shows Josh creating the fairy dust for this film as well Josh demonstrating his pallet knife painting technique.

Libby and Josh truly enjoyed living away from the LA area along their beloved California Coast. Beginning in the late 1940's, Josh and Libby traveled up and down the coast, enjoying trips north into Oregon. One of their favorite destinations in this early period was Bodega Bay and Sonoma County. By 1955, they decided to move to the Coast. They chose Carmel for its beauty, and it was closer to Los Angeles for Josh to get back and forth.

Of the Carmel locations Josh loved were Garrapata State Beach, Point Lobos, the Monterey harbor and Cannery Row.

At times, Josh would entertain guests visiting from Los Angeles including his good friend from the Disney Studios, watercolor background artist Ralph Hulett. For a time, he shared his Carmel Studio with Bennett Bradbury, another Disney artist visiting from Laguna Beach.

In 1960, Josh and Libby decided to build their dream home on the Coast. When costs in the Carmel area proved to prohibitive, they headed north to Mendocino. Just north of Mendocino is a tiny town of Caspar where Libby and Josh built a home high on the cliffs overlooking the Pacific. Josh passed away there, suffering a heart attack at the age of 54 while painting.

Today, people often say there is no such thing as bad publicity. Oscar Wilde said, "The only thing worse than having people talking about you is not having people talking about you."

In 1895 Meyer Straus had many people talking about him, and he probably didn't like it.

"Why was Meyer Straus being excommunicated?" As Claude Rains said to Humphrey Bogart in Casablanca, "I'd like to tell you it was because he killed a man. Its the romantic in me." But such is not the case. Meyer Straus' excommunication had nothing to do with salacious or evil actions or plots.

What makes this a noteworthy story is that Meyer Straus was not a "shock artist." He was a quiet and humble painter who would begin every painting session with prayer, dedicating his work to the glory of God.

In his quiet manner, he had written a private letter to another member of his parish saying something less than complimentary about the parish pastor, Dr. C. O. Brown. Reading between the lines of the San Francisco Call's articles, it appears Meyer Strauss expressed an opinion of Dr. Brown which was far less lofty than the opinion Dr. Brown had of himself. He was guilty of stepping on the wrong man's toes.

Did this furor strike a blow to Meyer Straus' professional success? No, not at all.

Five months later, the San Francisco Call published another article most complimentary to Meyer Straus and his prayerful approach to painting. It also publicizes that his painting has drawn the attention of San Francisco's pre-eminent art patron, Mrs. Jane Stanford.

Jane and Leland Stanford had a reputation of acquiring the services of the most worthy of California artists. For Meyer Straus to have received the attention of Mrs. Stanford and to have that attention published in the San Francisco Call certainly brought welcome attention.

MEYER STRAUS Biographical Sketch ... (1831-1905) Meyer Straus was born in Bavaria in 1831. He came to the U.S. in 1848 when he was 17. He moved from Ohio to St. Louis in 1853 where he worked as a scene painter at the Old Pine

Street Theater. After living briefly in the South in Mobile and New Orleans, he moved to Chicago where he painted scenery at Hooley's Theater. In 1875, his scene painting skills brought him to San Francisco where he worked for Tom Maguire of the Bush Street Theater and the Grand Opera House.

He established and maintained his own studio, and in 1877 was able to give up scene painting entirely. He made frequent sketching trips to Yosemite and to Marin and Monterey Counties, and occasionally ventured northward to Oregon. In 1890, he became an American citizen. Today, he is best known for his California landscapes and his portrayal of farm animals. He was a member of the Bohemian Club and the San Francisco Art Association. His works are presenting in the collections of the Oakland Museum, the Society of California Pioneers and the Sierra Nevada Museum in Reno.

*Note regarding the spelling of "Straus or Strauss" ... The San Francisco Call spelled the artist name "Strauss." The artist signed his paintings both before and after 1895 with one s, "Straus." It appears the San Francisco Call used the older German spelling without first checking with Meyer Straus himself.

The Walt Disney Family Museum
This museum tells Walt's story from the early days.
(on the Parade Grounds) 104 Montgomery Street,
The Presidio of San Francisco, CA 94129
-- view location on Google Maps --