New Years at Death Valley

Over the New Years holiday, I had the opportunity to visit Death Valley National Park.  Having not been there before I had a lot of ground to cover with my partner in crime (Scott Arnaz) in just 2 1/2 days.  We hit a lot of the major sites including the famous Mesquite Sand Dunes, Artist’s Palette, Zabriskie Point, Devil’s Golfcourse, and the Salt Flats near Badwater.

Particularly impressive was our visit to the remote Racetrack playa which is home to the mysterious sliding rocks.  The playa is nestled between the Cottonwood Mountains to the east and the Last Chance Range to the west. During periods of heavy rain, water washes down from nearby mountain slopes onto the playa, forming a shallow, short-lived lake. Under the hot Death Valley sun, the thin veneer of water quickly evaporates, leaving behind a layer of soft mud. As the mud dries, it shrinks and cracks into a mosaic of interlocking polygons.

Strewn across the playa are rocks of various sizes, some weighing several hundred pounds, which leave long tracks in the sediment.  Some of these tracks are in a straight line, but many make sharp changes of direction, long bending curves, or multiple twists and turns.  There are several theories as to what causes the rocks to move.  The predominent explanation is that during storms with accompanying high winds the rocks get blown around the slick, rain soaked playa and are subject to the multiple directional shifts of the wind.  No one knows for sure since this phenomema has never been witnessed, but it certainly seems to be the most logical explanation.

Scott Arnaz photographing converging rocks.

Sliding Rock with Track

Sliding Rock on the Racetrack Playa

Santa Cruz County 2009 Traveler’s Guide

Familiar face makes the cover of the latest Santa Cruz County 2009 Traveler’s Guide.

Cover of 2009 Santa Cruz County Traveler's Guide

To see the original photo visit http://www.paulzaretsky.com/birds/503.htm

Santa Cruz County Open Studios Art Tour

Join us once again for Open Studios at our home in Aptos.

Our studio will be open October 4 & 5 and 18 & 19, 2008 – 11:00am to 6:00pm

This is a fantastic art event with nearly 300 artists participating this year. To plan your tour, visit the Preview Exhibit at the Santa Cruz Art League, purchase a calendar or stop by our studio. Paul is artist #46 in the Open Studios Art Tour calendar (on the December 2008 page).

This is the best opportunity to meet Paul and see his work. Tasty refreshments will be served.

For a preview of more images, directions and more information visit our website http://www.paulzaretsky.com

Paul's ongoing study of leaves

Now Offering Image Panels

New this season, Paul is offering Image Panels as an alternative to his traditional framing option.

Image Panel close up

Image panels are an afforable alternative to our standard framing option. Instead of the traditional mounted, matted print under glass, with Image Panels the print is mounted to a premium wood panel and laminated with a tough, clear, UV protective coating. It provides a non-glare surface making images easier to see from any angle. They are easily cleaned of grease, dust and moisture and provide a safe alternative to glass for children’s rooms, public spaces, and large prints.

This framing option is available for all photographs in sizes. See our price list…

Stop by our Open Studios to check them out!

Capitola Art & Wine Festival

Once again we’ll be at the Capitola Art and Wine Festival September 6 & 7, 2008 in downtown Capitola. The festival runs from 10am to 6pm both days with a great lineup of bands and entertainment, wine, art, food and fun for kids. This is a great event for the whole family. To find out more, visit their website. Look for us near the food vendors at the south end of the festival – booth 74.