Lake County >> It’s been a year and a half since sip and paint classes were introduced to Lake County, and the novelty has yet to wear off. Diana Liebe’s watercolor and wine classes, held around the lake from the Lake County Wine Studio in Upper Lake to the Saw Shop Bistro in Kelseyville, nearly always fill up, and she sees many returning faces.
Although students can expect to walk away from a class with a quality piece of art, even if they may not fancy themselves artists, Liebe’s sip and paint classes are decidedly beginner friendly. Students don’t have to worry about drawing out the picture they’ll be painting, since Liebe does the legwork before the class begins. Then the sessions start with a few practice minutes in which students become accustomed to working with watercolors and the different types of brush strokes they’ll need to use.
“This is really easy and really fun and you don’t have to have any experience at all,” Liebe said.
In addition to wine and watercolors, Liebe, an artist working in a number of different mediums, also leads wine and art classes focusing of silk scarf painting, shoe painting and tie dye, among other materials. “Basically I do just about anything you can do on fabric,” she said.
Of course, the wine is enticing too, especially for people who may want a change from typical tasting scenarios. And as Lake County increasingly becomes known for its wineries, more and more people are going to be interested in wine-related activities. Plus, “When you’re painting and you have a glass of wine it makes it so much more fun,” said Liebe.
In May of 2015 Liebe brought sip and paint classes to the community after attending a wine and acrylics class at an Italian restaurant in Mendocino County. She thought wine and watercolors would provide a new activity for residents, while benefiting local wineries and establishments at the same time.
“Lake County is sort of a retirement area and I just wanted to provide something for people to do that they hadn’t done before,” Liebe explained.
She hoped the classes would be met with enthusiasm, but she was wary that because wine and watercolors was such a new concept around here, the whole thing would flop. But she needn’t have worried. Liebe’s wine and art classes have been so well received that students will often show up at her regularly scheduled Wednesday art class at the Main Street Gallery in Lakeport — opting to forgo the wine altogether — just so that they can learn more about watercolors.
Much like her sip and paint classes, Liebe’s Wednesday watercolor class is relaxed and low pressure. Every week she goes over a new technique with her students, leading them through a different painting each class. Those who are interested in the medium but aren’t sure if they want to commit can borrow Liebe’s supplies for their first day.
On top of sip and paint and Wednesday classes, Liebe leads other workshops and sessions around the county, and even travels to neighboring towns to teach wine and watercolors. And though her schedule keeps her busy, she likes it that way. She may be an artist, but she’s just as passionate about leading classes.
“I love teaching,” she said. “I just love sharing what I know and what I love with other people, because it makes them happy.”
Although Liebe began teaching watercolors at the Main Street Gallery just two years ago, she’s been involved in the local arts community for nearly 16 years. Not long after moving here, Liebe made a trip to the Lakeport gallery, where she was immediately talked into participating in a fashion show with her hand painted clothing. Things spiraled from there. Liebe obtained a teaching degree, started leading her own classes, and eventually became responsible for introducing something fresh to the community.
“I’m having fun. People in Lake County are doing a neat thing,” she said. “It’s new and different and fun and low stress. I’m just really happy to have brought this to Lake County.”
While Liebe isn’t offering any paint in sip classes for the rest of November, she will be displaying her artwork at the Dickens’ Faire this Saturday on Main Street in Lakeport from 11 a.m. -6 p.m. And then on Monday Dec. 5 at the Middletown Art Center, she’ll be teaching a Christmas card workshop for kids and parents.
Jennifer Gruenke can be reached at 900-2019.
