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LEARNING FROM THE MASTER
 Watercolor has always been a favorite medium for Ruth Yeates, who is pursuing a master's degree focusing on art literacy. (). You spend three years, maybe longer, perfecting your technique. When everything is second nature, from the way you hold the brush to how you fill it with paint ... When you've mastered the techniques and know how they work with what type of paper ... When you begin to paint loose, free and natural strokes and complete a work start to finish in 30 minutes ... You're now officially a Chinese watercolor artist. By Jeff Petersen Staff Writer "You never go over the same stroke. It all has to be spontaneous and show confidence," says Ruth Yeates. "Part of the art form is if you make a mistake you get rid of the work. Maybe you do 10 before you get one you're happy with. "Maybe it takes a half hour to get the painting done, but it's really taken three years to get to that point," she says. Such is the yin and yang of Chinese watercolor. Yeates is among the artists showing work in the 18th annual Season's Faire, which takes place Nov. 6 at Nightingale Gallery. The works will remain on display through Nov. 24. The gallery is open Monday through Friday 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Saturday noon to 5 p.m. A walk through Yeates' home on Sunset Drive reveals bamboo in repose, as is traditional, and the more experimental blowing in the wind. Yeates, though, also likes such subjects as orchids, chryanthemums and peonies. The home economics teacher at La Grande High School formerly taught art at Elgin High School before the program was cut. She is currently pursuing a master's degree focusing on art literacy. She and her husband, John, have two children, John Jr., 19, and Maggie, 13. Watercolor has always been a favorite medium for Yeates. Only in the past five years has her focus turned to Chinese watercolor. That's thanks to her mentor, Marvin Hansen, who died a couple of years ago at age 97. Hansen had moved to La Grande to be near family at age 92 after living many years in the San Francisco area. After a career of owning furniture stores, he started doing Chinese paintings in retirement and became a master. Every Sunday for three years Yeates took lessons from Hansen, who lived three blocks away. She learned about paints, brushes, papers philosophy even. "It was a real gift for me and a gift for him," Yeates says. Hansen gave Yeates some of the tools of the trade, and some she buys at the Vancouver, B.C., Chinatown. There are hake brushes to make bamboo stalks. Wolf hair brushes for landscapes. Sable brushes for leaves. Other brushes are made of sheep's wool and horse hair. Then there's rice, mulberry and handmade paper. The signature on her works is from a chop made of marble and carved in Chinatown. Pressed in traditional Chinese red ink, the resulting signature is like no other on earth. This past summer Yeates' art went out on a new branch. In a course with instructor Tom Dimond, she made 80 clay dishes. Bamboo designs cover salad plates, sushi plates and chopstick holders. This is just a part of the artist's new directions. Yeates is investigating fusing Eastern and Western art into something new and different. "Chinese art has helped me to paint cleaner and faster when I do western-style paintings," Yeates says. "I see a real influence from East to West." But she will always carry the lessons Hansen taught her in her heart. "Less is better," Yeates says. "Simplicity is important." If you go ... Season's Faire WHEN: 6:30 p.m. Nov. 6 WHERE: Nightingale Gallery, Loso Hall, Eastern Oregon University campus WHAT: Fine art, hors d'oeuvres, wine, special coffees, dessert BENEFITS: Arts for All opportunities in Union County SPONSOR: La Grande Arts Commission COST: $10 by mail, $15 at door ADVANCE TICKETS: Sunflower Books, The Frame-Up, EOU Bookstore, Mitre's Touch, Veterans Memorial Pool, any arts commissioner; The Bookloft, Enterprise; Betty's Books, Baker City |
