An Artist’s Inspiration: Part 2

Written by Jana Botkin

This is the second post in a series by artist Jana Botkin; visit weekly for a glimpse into her process as an artist, previews of her work over the years, and a unique look at some of Mineral King’s most historic cabins.

Because my pencil drawings of Mineral King cabins began back in the last century before scanners and digital photography, I don’t have many examples of the early drawings.
For this, I am grateful. Sometimes I ask people for those early drawings, wanting to correct and repair and improve them. Very few people have actually taken me up on that offer. Others try to sell them back to me, all in good fun.
In 1998, Jane Coughran and I co-published The Cabins of Mineral King. These are some of the drawings from that book.  Please excuse the watermarks and the color variation. Remember, they are from the last century when I knew next to nothing except a love for Mineral King cabins and a love of pencil drawing.
People often ask where they can get a copy of The Cabins of Mineral King. The answer is to get lucky either on Amazon, eBay, or perhaps at the AAUW book sale down in Visalia. 

Next post, I’ll show you some of the many cards of Mineral King scenes in pencil.

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Jana Botkin is a lifelong resident of Tulare County, a farmer’s daughter from Ivanhoe, and wife to Michael Botkin for 33 years. Using pencils, oil paint, and murals, she makes art that people can understand, of places and things they love, at prices that won’t scare them, always wanting to provide visible reminders that Tulare County is a place to be proud of. She has been a full time artist since 1993, working from her Three Rivers home studio. She has published two books of local cabin communities, The Cabins of Mineral King (with Jane Coughran)and The Cabins of Wilsonia, five local coloring books, and Mineral King Wildflowers: Common Names. Jana accepts commissions, teaches drawing lessons, and blogs about her artful life five days a week on her website, www.cabinart.net.