Molly Hashimoto has exhibited her artwork at the Miller Library for many years. Library patrons and staff alike have delighted in her original works, along with sketchbooks, prints, cards, calendars, and other depictions of regional landscapes and animal life.
It is very exciting to have a new book by Molly, Colors of the West: An Artist’s Guide to Nature’s Palette. This is in part the story of how she came to embrace watercolor painting en plein air (in the open air) after seeing the field sketchbooks of Thomas Moran from the late 19th century. His work was instrumental in the creation of the first national park at Yellowstone.
“This rendezvous with Moran compelled me to reconsider what it meant to be an artist—how to work, where ideas are generated, the purpose of art. I felt that I, too, had to create work in the field, to keep sketchbooks and journals to record my own experiences in the outdoors.”
This book is also an excellent introduction to this style of painting and you quickly learn that Molly is not only an accomplished artist, but also an excellent teacher. “When I teach, I try to reach the ‘inner artist’ who longs to mimic the beauty of nature, without necessarily knowing all there is to know about color, technique, etc. This book, like my classes, urges you to just pick up a paintbrush and get started!”
Published in the November 2017 Leaflet Volume 4, Issue 11