The Widlund Gallery at Tannery Pond Center presents: Adirondack Wildlife: Paintings & Gourd Sculptures by Timothy Sauter
Tuesday, February 18 - Saturday, March 29
Reception: Friday, February 21 | 5-7 PM
Gallery Hours: Tues – Fri, 10:00 AM – 4:00 PM | Sat, 12:00 - 4:00 PM | additional hours by appointment
Artist Statement: I confess that my whimsical drawings started as doodles. Everyone likes to doodle while on the phone, at the beach, trouble sleeping, event in school, right? But I guess I got carried away. With the introduction of a wide variety of new markers, my creative juices flourished. Hence, my doodles became finished colorful master pieces.
Timothy Sauter
Tim, with his wife Dianne, is based in Malta, NY and has a seasonal cottage located in Bolton Landing. His love for the Adirondack goes way back to his childhood days at Gull Bay on Lake George, where he became fond of catching (and releasing) fish, frogs and turtles. He learned how to fish with his uncle and explored picking blueberries with his aunt.
Tim spent many years away from the Lake George scene getting his formal education at RIT and SUNY Albany, having a family, working as a teacher, graphic artist (GE) and several art-based fundraising companies in Schenectady and Saratoga.
When he met Dianne, he renewed his interest in Lake George. They used the cottage as a launching pad to explore the Adirondacks, from Lake George to Long Lake, to Lake Champlain, to Paul Smiths, and much more. Two of his favorite places continue to be Camp Santononi and Elk Lake/Clear Pond.
Since he retired in 2016, Tim has become very active painting landscapes featuring wildlife that inhabit the Adirondacks. He has always had an interest in vegetable gardening while Dianne was growing flowers. They tried a package of gourd seeds in 2017 and low and behold, they had a crop of over 100 gourds. What would we do? Dianne went online only to discover a vast number of artists and artisans making an array of items. We decided to try bird houses and vases. During COVID, Tim made 25 new paintings. Dianne painted her delightful flowers and birds on the gourds. Then, they ventured out to various arts and crafts shows at LARAC, Long Lake, Schroon Lake, Lake George, and Saratoga. In the process, Tim started to realize that many of the gourd varieties resembled birds and animal shapes. It all started with Mr. Raccoon. He tried to use gourd seeds and stems on the surface. He continued using as much of the gourd as possible. Now, many only have eyes that are not made of gourd parts. His favorites include: ducks, owls, beavers, opossums, and foxes.
Tim has always been fascinated by loons. While canoeing with Dianne, they would often stop and watch a mother dive under water while her baby waited for her to surface only to have her baby repeat the process, which turned out to be an important learning experience for the baby. Tim found that that Chestertown to North Creek are popular areas for loon lovers including Look Lake and the Crazy Look Distillery.
Check out Tim on Facebook at: T L Sauter or contact him by email: bigyellowhousedesigns@gmail.com.
