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The End Of An Era-In Mendocino That Is


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After selling my work in a small tourist town 3.5 to my south called Mendocino Ca, my current outlet of 16 years is closing its doors. They have had some ups and downs and almost folded a few times but made it thru the big downturn. I drive down on Tuesday and pick up my work.

I’m driving away from being in this town with work since the middle 80’s. I’m not looking to replace this outlet. They are closing due to health issues. It was a consignment shop

This place is known to most in the US from that Tv series Murder she wrote.

For me it’s been some great scuba diving to the south of there and a great place to drop off pottery on a dive trip. I have had some great success in a my 30 some years there and it’s going to be in the rear-view mirror on Tuesday.

I thought about getting into another shop but I caved on the thought as its been a pain to service this far away location the past few years. I had to get tough with them awhile back and I decided  then to try to keep more local.

Like the song from Jackson Brown says all good things must come to an end.

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Your story makes me so homesick. I moved from northern CA about six yrs ago to Idaho. Actually I'm always homesick I just can't always let myself think about it, ugh. For the record I'm planning on moving to Oregon in a couple years but can't yet.

But I digress: I remember when I first moved to Humboldt Co., CA in the early 1980's from the SF bay area, Humboldt was known as an "Art Region" -they still try, but back then there were galleries everywhere in all the towns along 101 of varying levels from gift shops of everything handmade to -sorta- fine art. (*cough*) -not like LA or anything but, you know, it was a place to start out and exist in good company if you were an artist, you could even make a living at it if you had skill.

By the time I left in 2010 there were just a few venues by comparison. Cost of living became massive. The redwood burl shops selling local pottery and bric-a-brac had to their credit survived for the most part thanks to redwood tourism. Not to get grumpy, but this seems clear to me a result of the changing wealth structure of America; hardly anyone has money to buy themselves a $100 oil painting from an unknown local artist, the few that do go San Francisco and spend $10k instead. Frankly I'm a bit resentful at being priced out of my home state as an artist and I don't mind saying so. Long story and I'll leave it there, for now.

I'd literally kill for a walk on the beach right now.

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Brick and mortar is very hard these days everywhere.

Mendo is not what it used to be either. Mostly Paintings and Jewelry .That said I had a great 30 year run there in sales.

I picked up 22 large boxes of pots-about 3 car kiln loads and am now cleaning them of price stickers .Sending some out to other outlets and boxing some for my shows.

Yappy

A few choice locations on Main Street empty and for rent .

Town is still choke full of retirees wandering around-they just do not spend much-no younger folks or many families.

 

Out west not as many full time potters these days-Humboldt and Mendocino are still the highest in artist numbers in the state as far as counties-but many are retiring and the outlets for art are diminishing.The boom is now in adult art centers.

I think its nation wide trend.

 

The ocean well its still there and will be when you return to it. The ocean is my mother and I cannot be away to long myself.

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People are more into their selves than the art and nature around them.  They are addicted to their phones, sitting around playing games, texting and taking selfies.  We just got back from a trip to the Grand Canyon about a third of the people would take a quick look at the view take a couple of photos with their phone and walk away playing with their phone.  Why would they need to buy art, its right there on the phone.  I have had cell phones forever, my first one was a bag phone, then the brick phone ect.  They were  necessary for my work, when I quit working a got a prepaid cell phone that I rarely use I was tired of being tied to a phone.  Denice

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I just recycled my bag phone  yesterday . I to went thru all those  phones as well for work-that work was selling pottery and I had a device that took credit cards thru the bag phone  and thru several other models way before the square came along.

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Spent parts of 3 days going thru 22 boxes of pots taking off stickers (lacquer thinner)-cleaning the dust off some pots.

Repricing pots sending about 1/2 off to other outlets-big job

all done-its all in the rearview mirror now. Fresh start with these pots now.

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