Cultivate
Artists inviting community to envision healthy and equitable food access
Cultivate was an art residency and community engagement project funded by Upstate California Creative Corps that pairs place-based art and food access. Four Plumas County artists created meaningful art capturing the essence of community connection to food, farms, and local relationships to land.
Meet the Artists
Amy Napoleon
I dream of conscious awareness of self-love, community connection, and land, while always embracing the beauty that is ever present. LSFP is currently working to resolve food insecurities and build healthy community connections, while providing a beautiful space for all. I am so honored to be project.
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Amy Napoleon is a Plumas County-based relief artist. She works primarily with relief printing, but also likes to crop rotate her art, through working with cyanotypes and teaching elementary school art. Her work is a direct reflection of her interests, which include social justice, natural science, land sovereignty and community connections. Born in Rochester, Minnesota, Amy attributes her connection to social and land justice to her Lakota ancestors and the many meaningful individuals that have broadened her perspective through sharing their stories.
Personal Statement: My children are my biggest inspirations. Inspirations to create a beautiful and more conscious state of mind through provoking art. Using my natural drive to create art, I strive to then weave a story into each piece. A story that sometimes questions norms or current standards but always embraces the beauty of that which is still present.
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The images carved for this project were inspired from photos that I took during the 2023 farming season. 2023 was the most beautiful year of growth at LSFP, the land was thriving, and I wanted to capture the beauty of the harvest and individuals working to grow such abundant crops.
The process of relief printing involves drawing or transferring a design on a linoleum block, then carefully carving away the negative space. Once the block is carved it is then inked with a roller. The ink adheres to the raised surface and is then pressed onto paper revealing the design.
Emma Talamantes
When I dream about the future, I imagine everyone having the access and means to eat quality produce as well as the access to the resources and time to create art. Both art and produce add vibrancy and beauty to our lives. They both create community which bring us together.
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Emma Talamantes is the Outreach and Events coordinator for the Lost Sierra Food project and a farmhand on Rugged Roots. She was born and raised in Oakland, CA and moved to Plumas County in August. She has been practicing Visual Arts since childhood and attended Oakland School for the Arts. Her art is often inspired by nature. She is excited to now be apart of a project that links regenerative farming to her art practice.
Personal Statement: I am moved by the power of art to move us, provoke discussion, and inspire action. My passion for food justice brought me to Quincy, because I wanted to learn about ecological farming and creating successful food access projects. I am grateful to be a part of this project and to have had the time to ruminate on how much beauty Rugged Roots farm has added to my life.
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I wanted to paint scenes from the farm at the height of harvest that inspired me. First I used colored pencils to troubleshoot ideas for my paintings. Then for the paintings themselves, I used acrylic paint mixed with a glass medium on stretched canvas.
Presley Alexander
The opportunity to participate in the “Cultivate” art/food/community project is a satisfying full circle moment for me. As a former organic farmer, activist for regional and just food systems, and even one who helped to develop the Rugged Roots site, I now get to bring my artistic skills back to the farm!
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Created in a backyard barn turned studio, Presley’s intricately cut metal lighting has sold world wide, 5 out of 7 continents to date! Installations can be viewed in restaurants from New York city to San Francisco Bay, and proudly, right here at home in Quincy Pharmacy and Feather River Food Coop. Her pieces can be glimpsed in Pottery Barn Catalog photo shoots, episodes of the TV series Empire, and Google Summit conference rooms. The Best of Show winner at Reno Art Fest 2018, she earned a solo exhibit at Sierra Arts Gallery in Reno’s Riverwalk district.
Personal Statement: The opportunity to participate in the “Cultivate” art/food/community project is a satisfying full circle moment for me. My professional art career is a culmination of all the training I have received since joining the Quincy community in ‘96 when I entered the Equine Studies program at Feather River College. As well as earning my Associate of Science degree in horse training, I enjoyed art and welding classes and completed the Entrepreneurial Skills Certificate program. As a former organic farm owner, activist for regional and just food systems, and even one who helped to develop the current farm site that houses Rugged Roots farm and The Lost Sierra Food Project, I now get to bring my artistic skills back to the farm!
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My project for this residency is a first production piece that combines my torch work skills with my new found love of floral painting.
I love the juxtaposition of rigid metaI in contrast with the soft and graceful forms of nature. After 10 plus years of focusing on metalwork I began painting regularly in early spring of 2023, at first exploring with acrylics. I soon returned to watercolor, which I had dabbled in a few years ago. That led to further exploration with gouache, which is kind of a happy medium of the 2, a water based paint that is opaque and can be layered like acrylics.
Florals are my primary subject, as my true joy is really playing with color. Flowers offer an endless range of color exploration along with tone, value, light and shadow play.
Spending time out at Rugged Roots farm this season has been incredibly inspiring. I have been able to reconnect with the place, land, the food and floral bounty, our community, and the continuing generation of farmers again. I am so grateful.
Rebecca Glaspy
I love the connection to plants, color, process, and “slow” fashion that eco dying facilitates. Some of the techniques used for dying are ancient practices of getting color into fabric, while others are more modern. As an artist who strives to make beautiful things from nothing, I love this type of art.
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Rebecca Glaspy is a natural dye and fiber artist living in Taylorsville, Ca. She grew up in Gerber, Ca on her parents native plant nursery. After high school, Rebecca earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Studio Art from Humboldt State University. After meeting her husband, they moved to Plumas County, had two children and have been here for 12 years now. She has since been teaching art to K-12 students at Plumas Charter School alongside her art practice.
Personal Statement: In the last 3 years I have been very curious about and dedicated to learning the techniques of both dying fabric with natural materials and sewing. As an artist who loves to make beautiful things from nothing, I love this type of art. I thrift most of the natural dyed fabric I use, I can grow and forage the dye plants, and then sew the fabric into something new and useful.
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This artist residency has enabled me to take a deep dive into natural dying and sewing. Dyed with stitched resist shibori technique I was able to grow, ferment, and dye fabric with my own own Japanese Indigo leaves. I have also been sewing Fanny packs from her reclaimed white fabric, natural dyed with an array of plants and flowers.
Cultivate Events and Gallery Tour
Opportunities for community engagement and art enjoyment!
March 12-19th: On display at Headwaters Cafe in Portola
March 19-April 20th: On display at Mohawk Community Resource Center in Blairsden
April 20th: Cultivate Reception. Meet the artists and learn about LSFP food access programs at Mohawk Community Resource Center 4pm to 6pm. Wine and snacks provided.
May 18th: Hear us talk about the project at the Dixie Fire Collaborative meeting from 11am to 1pm at the Greenville Elementary
June 7th: Cultivate Reception. Meet the artists, engage with LSFP staff, and a silent auction fundraiser featuring the artists’ cultivate creations at Plumas Arts. Art on Display in Plumas Arts through June.
LSFP’s Commitment to local food access
We are committed to providing nutrient rich, local produce for ALL. We serve our region through a weekly farm stand (we accept EBT/Cal Fresh) and our honor system farm fridge, open 7 days a week. We offer subsidized produce to underserved populations, along with free healthy cooking classes and nutritional education. We donate free produce to food banks and crisis centers in our county.
A hub for learning and community
Rugged Roots is a project of the Lost Sierra Food Project and a demonstration/learning site for the majority of LSFP’s programs. On any given day in the growing season you will find children of all ages exploring and learning through a variety of ag-based programs. LSFP also runs workforce development programs employing young adults each season and training up the next generation of farmers and land stewards. The community is also invited to the farm for food preservation, cooking, and health and wellness workshops.
Learn about our events
Cultivate Support
This activity is funded in part by the California Arts Council, a state agency, through the Upstate California Creative Corps program
