Sequim Gazette staff
“Painting is like composing music, it comes from the same place,” says Lee Oskar.
Oskar, the artist responsible for the 2013 Sequim Lavender Farm Faire poster, also is a musician, one of the founding members of the group War, which recorded top-10 hits including “Low Rider,” “Cisco Kid” and “Why Can’t We Be Friends?”
Oskar’s acrylic painting “Lavender Fields Forever” is the basis for the Lavender Farm Faire poster this year. It evolved after he stayed at Purple Haze Lavender Farmhouse in Sequim during his musical appearance at the 2012 Sequim Balloon Festival. The art also is featured in marketing materials and on the sportswear collection.
Giclee prints of some of Oskar’s paintings in this series will be available for purchase during the Farm Faire and he will be signing posters. Giclee prints also are available online at www.leeoskarpaintings.com. Proceeds from the sales of “Lavender Fields Forever” prints are being donated by Oskar to the Sequim Lavender Farmers Association fund.
The Sequim Lavender Farm Faire is an annual celebration and fundraising event of the Sequim Lavender Farmers Association and is part of Sequim’s Lavender Weekend, held this year July 19-21. The members are local family owned and operated farms with over 125 years of collective lavender-growing experience.
Main attractions at the Sequim Lavender Farm Faire are the Heritage Lavender Farm Tours, with a festival at every farm, and the Lavender Arts & Crafts Faire in the Park at Carrie Blake Park.
SLFA also has developed year-round programs, including Tour de Lavender (Aug. 3-4), a Lavender Oil Distillation Celebration (Aug. 31-Sept. 1), a Winter Lavender Faire (Nov. 30) and a Spring Lavender Celebration (TBA).
A special membership, $35, entitles members to receive two tickets the Sequim Lavender Farm Faire (value $30), a free poster ($10 value), discount on all SLFA events, an annual newsletter and a 15-percent discount all year long on lavender plants and products from any SLFA farms.
For more information on the Lavender Farm Faire and the Sequim Lavender Farmers Association, visit www.sequimlavender.org, e-mail info@sequimlavenderfarms.org or call 452-6300.
