Page 1 — Rev. 6/11/05

n the summer of 2004, Healdsburg, California hosted The Trucks Stop Here, an unparalleled arts celebration and charity benefit event in which 35 elaborately decorated fiberglass trucks were parked throughout the city from June through August.

Healdsburg is historically a farming and agricultural community, and grapes have long since replaced the prunes that were once grown there.  The idea of using trucks for this project was born out of a desire to honor the history of Healdsburg while providing a fun and unique art form with which artists could express themselves.  What could have been more appropriate than 1930s-style trucks?

Cowpainters of Chicago, Illinois were commissioned to create the trucks which became wonderful outdoor sculptures.  They measured roughly 40" tall, 54" long and 24" wide, and they weighed approximately 80 lbs.

As the trucks were being built, artists living in the seven Bay Area counties submitted proposals up until February, 2004, outlining their ideas for unique ways in which to decorate and adorn the trucks including paint, glazes, and ceramics.  We were only limited by our imagination!  The 35 artists selected by the sponsors to participate in this event, of which I was one, received an $800 honorarium and recognition at the truck site.

Here is my hand-sketched drawing which, if you've browsed through my paintings, you'll see incorporates many of the images from the series entitled "That Joyous Feeling Again."

On September 18th, Sonoma-Cutrer Vineyards in Windsor held a huge gala auction and the trucks went on the auction block with the proceeds benefiting the Boys & Girls Club of Healdsburg.

Even though the trucks are gone now, you can still browse through The Trucks Stop Here website.  And if you're ever in the area, Healdsburg is a wonderful town which still retains the ambience of old California.  Here is a map from MapQuest.  You'll see Healdsburg noted with the red star, then Windsor just south of it on Hwy 101.  If you look directly south of Healdsburg, you'll see Sebastopol just off Hwy 12 which is where I live.

I very much enjoyed participating in this event and creating a unique truck of my own.  I took many photographs at different stages along the way so you can see how the truck came alive.  These are the first photographs taken on March 21st as the truck was being delivered to my house and moved into my workspace. 

(Click photos to enlarge)

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