Matilija Poppy & The Mendocino Art Center
The Mendocino Art Center, located in a stunning setting overlooking a rugged expanse of the Pacific Ocean 150 miles north of San Francisco, has been an artists’ haven since 1959 when founders Bill and Jennie Zacha first realized the potential of this unique community as an artists’ colony.
Today the Art Center is a highly regarded artistic and educational institution, renowned as a premier art workshop destination, covering more than 150 unique two to five-day courses, designed for beginning to advanced artists. Workshops in ceramics, fiber arts, fine art, jewelry/metal arts, and sculpture are led by outstanding local and national instructors.
The workshops attract visitors from across the country, as well as internationally, who enjoy the retreat-like setting far from the hustle and bustle of city life. Mendocino Art Center campus is just a short stroll to cafes, restaurants, shops, and the Headlands State Park overlooking the ocean.
The artist community has come together to donate to the Mendocino Art Center. With a vision to complete a jewel representing the grounds of Mendocino the “Poppy Project” bloomed. The Matilija poppy is a regular on campus. Plants standing 4-5 feet tall with flowers a good 5 inches in diameter have inspired artists visiting time and time again.
Matilija Poppy
In the late summer of 2015 over morning breakfast, board member John Cornacchia, jewelry studio director Nancy Gardner, jewelry artist Tom Herman decided they also had an idea to celebrate life, in the center for the arts.
And the “Poppy Project” came to be. Tom Herman and Patsy Croft had worked together before researching the 1900’s influence of enameling in the US on the Ada Brooch. http://alohilanidesigns.com/the-ada-brooch/ With the inspiration to create in their bones they were invited to the Center to teach workshops on techniques of fabricating, chasing, saw piercing and enameling to give students a closer look of how a jewel of this statue is made. And have a first-hand look of the beginning of Tom and Patsy’s collaborate in making the jewel “Matilija Poppy Brooch”.
With the help of fellow artists coming together, in a stormy Jan of 2017, Ethan Herman, Diana Casaba, Nancy Gardner, Bob Weinstock, and John Cornacchia, lent hands to help Tom and Patsy to create this beautiful jewel of 18k gold and fine enamels. Approx. 3” x 5” After spending 2017 in Tom’s studio and 2018 in Patsy’s studio the Matilija Poppy Brooch is now on it’s way to NY to capture public attention.
Great news. Sotheby’s plans to auction the Matilija Poppy Brooch April 2019.
Sotheby’s was the auction house that sold the Fabulous Ada Brooch
The brooch will also travel to Sotheby’s Auction House in Los Angeles
More great news The Matilija Poppy Auctioned at Sotheby’s on April 17, 2019, for $52,000 Wow Wow
we are so excited! And a huge Thank You to Sotheby’s for all their support!!
Check out our day by day work to appreciate what goes into a project like this!