greenhorns art – miranda currie

August 9, 2009 in Art, Letters from young farmers

Greenhorn & artist Miranda Currie sent us some of her whimsical artwork recently, and we love it.  Here’s a note from Miranda about her work and inspiration.

I currently work as a farm apprentice and artist-in-residence at a small farm in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada in Northern California. My step-sister, Willow Hein, began Honey in the Heart Farm this winter, and enlisted her sister and me to work as apprentices. In the course of the year the farm has transformed from a rocky hillside covered with blackberries and wild roses to one cultivated acre of strawberries, melons, veggies, honeybees and flowers. We provide produce and flower bouquets to a small group of CSA members and will soon be setting up a booth at the nearby farmers market in Nevada City, CA. I spend several days a week helping with all aspects of the farm- digging beds, planting, weeding, harvesting, preparing CSA boxes, etc. The rest of my time I spend working as an artist.

While working on the farm, I constantly keep my eye out for intriguing plants and objects, and take photos of people hard at work. On my free days, I spend time in the field with my sketch book drawing from life. Back in the studio I use pen and ink and watercolor paints to combine my sketches of plants, objects, and people into unusual and implausible scenes, often involving encounters between people and abnormally large vegetables. I love to create scenarios which hover between everyday tasks and absurd fantasy.

It’s been profoundly satisfying working on this land, just down the hill from where I spent my childhood, side by side with my step-sisters. I’ve found that my farm work and my artwork go hand in hand, each informing the other as I work to cultivate the land and capture its beauty.

Check out the farm’s website at www.honeyintheheartfarm.com and my website (its a work in progress) at www.mirandacurrie.com

Thanks,
Miranda