After a stellar career as an inventor and machinist, FRANK JOHNSON traded his successful orthodontic equipment company for a simpler life in Sonoma County. Having grown up on a farm in upstate New York, he always felt a powerful connection with the earth and sought to become a gentleman farmer. He bought an apple and prune orchard that hugged the Dry Creek and Russian River Valleys, sensing that this unique microclimate would be ideal for growing grapes. And before long Frank was selling his fruit to some of the most highly acclaimed wineries. In 1977, Chateau St. Jean released a “Frank Johnson Vineyards Chardonnay,” making him among the first vineyard designated grape growers. He took tremendous pride in his fruit and dreamed of someday producing a family estate wine. Roshambo Winery, the brainchild of his granddaughter, Naomi Brilliant, is the fulfillment of that dream. Today, Frank’s spirit of innovation and commitment to excellence still resonates in every glass. Here’s to you, Frank! Thanks for making this possible!

(We commissioned Sonoma County emerging artist Todd Barricklow to carve Frank Johnson’s likeness into a ceramic tile. For those of you who frequented Roshambo’s conceptual art shows at the old gallery, I’m sure Todd’s highly distinct style of artwork will be familiar to you as he had two successful openings. Look out for his innovative designs in our future endeavors or find him now at Killing Time Studios).

A while back, we had a rather grim or dark idea for an art show that showcased the works of the condemned. Roshambo’s “Death Row Art Show” surely would have raised a few eyebrows and likely invoked a fresh batch of hate mail, but eliciting and evoking sharp emotional responses was always part of the Gallery’s mission. Naomi often showcased the works of emerging conceptual artists with somewhat skewed, slanted or prurient perspectives. NOT the wine country water colors that you see on too many walls in our neck of the vines.  And just in case you missed our revolving art shows, I’ll use this blog in the future to spotlight some of the artists we’ve displayed in the past and track their movements.  But in the meanwhile, I’d like to shine a bright light on a recent SF Weekly feature on Death Row Art. Oh, and given the ecclectic crew of nuts, bolts and weirdos that we staff, it should come as no surprise that this story was penned by one of our former tasting room employees, Ella Lawrence.

Here’s a teaser…

Some artists create best in crowded cafes, the burbling noise of city life rolling over their shoulders as they hunch over their work, a forgotten latte cooling beside them; others require complete silence. Some artists work best in huge, wide-open spaces; others prefer to be closed in, no pretty views to divert attention.

Artist William Noguera’s preferred method is to fold a wool blanket on top of an upside-down five-gallon bucket. It supports his large frame as he pushes his mattress to the side. Bent over the bed frame, he lays down layer after layer of dots. From his drafting pen to the 20-by-30-foot Strathmore paper, the ink transforms a blank page to a hyperrealistic photo-image after hundreds of hours of painstaking labor.He has the time to spare.

Four feet wide by 10 feet long, this artist’s working space is utterly free from distractions. Precise scale drawings of it and the artist’s descriptions show that it’s free from pretty much everything except for a bed, a toilet, and a few sketchbooks. Those books contain the vivid dream images Noguera has transmitted from his internal landscape to paper during his 18 years on San Quentin’s Death Row.

Click to read the full story…

Watch your Ass Darth Vader! That’s No Camel Toe!

Today’s glimpse of, how shall I put this, “art on the fringe of good taste” comes courtesy of our friend, Gabriel Alcaraz of Art & Mayhem. This wickedly talented tattoo & multi-media artist is currently showing two paintings at our gallery’s Tattoo Art Show.