"A Look at the Past and New Beginnings" is the theme of an autobiographical review of artwork and paintings by Mimi Jobe. Collectors of her work are familiar with Mimi's Carson Valley subject matter and historical Christmas cards. However, this retrospective show will surprise a lot of people as it covers not only the Valley interests and painting, but the years before she moved here. The artwork and paintings to be presented at the show illustrate the life adventures that she and her three children were involved in due to her husband's many interests.
"The show is a retrospective of my life," Jobe said. "When I see it all together like this it's a little surprising to me. I used to illustrate fashions for store advertisements in newspapers. Back then it was a very high paying job for a woman to do. About 25 years ago I almost went to San Francisco but I am glad I didn't. They have quit using artists for illustrations like that and there was a lot of very good artist out looking for jobs."
Jobe's father was a very positive influence in her life (the artistic talent came from his side of the family). Even though her creative interests began to show up in the early years, she had no formal art training nor was she able to take advantage of an art scholarship earned at the age of 16. However, with her dad's early encouragement, she persevered. As a result, today she is a self-taught artist and has been working professionally in this field all her life.
"I'm very excited about sharing this show," Jobe said. "Much of this artwork has been stored away. As I look at it today, it almost seems as if another artist did it. I even found a drawing I did at age 12."
Her son, Barry Jobe, owner of the Lone Tree Gallery, is impressed with both the diversity and the professional quality of all Jobe's paintings which will be shown at the Gardnerville Museum and Cultural Center this summer.
The show covers the early years, starting with the first efforts of the young artist designing dresses and drawing pretty girls, then the years as a fashion illustrator and watercolor artist (two one-man shows in a prestigious Miami Beach gallery.)
Jobe's body of work encompasses places and drastic lifestyle changes that hint of much of the drama that took place in her life. As a result, diversity was to be a much repeated theme in her life as well as in her work.
While many people are aware of this background, few have seen the artwork that illustrates their shark fishing venture in the Keys; the years in Mexico and south Florida that resulted in paintings of boats, docks and exotic composition of tropical landscapes.
Then there were the years in advertising, some modeling photos and a few photos depicting their venture into chinchilla raising, the Virginia hunt country and a group of illustrations of their years of gold mining in Hawthorne. Jobe says this was the most difficult adjustment for her. She missed the lush, green landscapes of Miami that she had left for the barren land of Nevada ... but she painted anyway. Later they were to move to a farm in Illinois where they farmed and built homes that Mimi designed. Eventually, the family moved to Carson Valley, this period of her work becoming the most familiar to those who live here.
Included in her Valley artwork, she has painted portraits of the children of some of the ranch families, done pencil sketches of school children when she was an artist in residence at the middle school and pen and ink drawings of historical and commercial buildings in Minden and Gardnerville.
"Some of my portrait work is being borrowed back from some of the families for this show," Jobe said. The Settelmeyer children and the Dresslers are among these images to be borrowed back for the event.
Earlier, Jobe worked on beautification projects for the community, designing and building award-winning "Miss Douglas County" floats as well as the design and restoration of the yellow caboose for the chamber of commerce office (which is no longer in the area). She also did the preliminary drawings for the clock triangle in Minden.
The show will include most of the originals of the 28 Christmas card paintings featured at Joyce's Antiques during the holiday season. And then a complete change of subject material is the original fairy and unicorn fantasy collector plate series that Jobe has done for the Bradford Exchange. She was contracted to do this work 15 years ago and in between her sage, quail and Carson Valley compositions, she painted them.
Barry and Mimi Jobe, along with Donnis Thran and the museum staff, will be working together to produce this retrospective show in August. The Jobeses are donating a framed 24- by 36-inch gicleé painting on canvas - "Sierra Vista" (valued at $1,100) as a raffle prize to benefit the museum. Raffle tickets can be purchased at the Lone Tree Gallery, the museum and Joyce's Antiques.
The art show will be 4-9 p.m. Saturday, at the Carson Valley Museum & Cultural Center, 1477 Highway 395 in Gardnerville. For more information, call 782-2555.
