Editor’s Note: On 13 July 2019, twenty Delta-based artists will participate in a group show at Park Delta Bay in the Community Room and under the big tent. We will be featuring profiles of some of the participating artists, of which the following are two. We hope this introduction will inspire you to come see all of the art on display and to explore the work being shown.
************************************************************************************************
When you enter the Wandering Gypsy, you first notice Zahna Flemming Smith’s dancing eyes as she leads a tour of the shop. She has an earnestness about her which reflects her dedication to her art, her husband, and her children — not necessarily in that order.
Zahna’s mother claims that she named Zahna after a Russian princess. Zahna doubts the authenticity of this origin, but the flowing silk of her blouse and the tilt of her chin suggest regalness, if not by heritage then by character. Zahna’s artistic bent began in childhood. Her grandmother surrounded her with art supplies and craft projects, encouraging creativity. Her medium depends upon her mood. In times of personal quiet and calm, her art might be light and peaceful. In darker times, her hands fall still. She has to talk through her depression and find a way to express what she feels. Days or weeks might pass when she doesn’t touch any sort of work but eventually, the feeling resolves itself.
Zahna works in wire, making jewelry and sculpting. She also paints, mostly acrylic, often on wood. One of her works draws the viewer for a closer examination. What first seems to be a reflection of the room’s overhead fixture turns out to be an incredible glow produced by Zahna’s deft touch and the spirit which she imbues in her paintings.
Born and raised in San Diego, Zahna had her first child at 19, and detoured from art as a full time pursuit while she raised her son. In 2011, she lost her partner to a tragic accident. A year or so later, she and Harley Smith met, fell in love, and began making art together.
After moving to Colorado, they wanted to establish a business name for their creative endeavors. They first registered “Wandering Gypsy Artistry” as a Colorado sole proprietorship and DBA. Later, they pursued the same registration after returning to California.
Harley credits Zahna for the success of their relocation to Isleton. As for Zahna, she indicates that they wanted to be close to family in the Russian River area, but saw an ad for an apartment in Isleton. Like many novice ex-pats who settle here, they fell in love with the Delta and immediately rented the place for themselves and their young daughter, Lilla. A short while later, the front store in their building became available. Zahna proposed renting the place and establishing a gallery and, eventually, a tattoo and body art shop. Harley did not expect what they now have to evolve from this dream so quickly. “Zahna is hard-working and supportive,” he insists. “We could not have done this if she hadn’t believed in us. Her efforts made it happen.”
Their shop recently became one of a small number of state-certified body art and tattoo shops in Sacramento County, and the first in Isleton, with the next closest being a shop in Walnut Grove which only does private sessions. Harley has the bona-fides to run this place. He started at fourteen, as an apprentice to an established tattoo shop in Sauk, Wisconsin. But his love of body art started in grade school, on the southside of Chicago, where he drew on himself and other kids with markers. He got in trouble but remained intrigued. A friend of his mother would draw pictures on him and spray them to make them last.
Harley credits his mother for making him learn about the permanency of tattoos before agreeing that he could have one. She also made him pay for that first one by himself. When they moved to Sauk City, he couldn’t tattoo so he started doing body piercings. The only artist in town sent his crew over to bring Harley into the shop. The man admonished him not to pierce minors, and then, seeing his keen interest, gave him an apprenticeship. Six months later, just shy of fifteen, Harley became the youngest licensed tattoo artist in Wisconsin.
The first shop at which Harley worked gave him the ability to ink in a variety of styles. He defines major styles as Japanese; American-Traditional, and New School. He considers his work to be mostly in the third group, with bright, vivid colors. He worked at the first shop for six years, then hit the tattoo convention circuit for another two. He made a name for himself, and earned a thirty-day stint as a guest artist at a shop in Amsterdam. He remembers that time as eye-opening. Though the European style and the American style differ, in Amsterdam he saw a lot of tourists, of all nationalities, and learned to work with many different types of customers.
Smith says he won’t tattoo everyone who comes to any shop where he works. “Intoxication prompts many people to think they want a tattoo, but I won’t tattoo someone who is too far gone to appreciate what they are doing,” he indicated. “And some people don’t think it all the way through,” he continues. He tells a story about a woman who came to that first place, the shope where he apprenticed. She said her husband didn’t like tattoos so she wanted to get a beautiful one, thinking that he loved her and would then love the tattoo. The owner made her go home and talk about it with her husband. She came back, indicating that she had done so, and got the tattoo. Regrettably, she hadn’t actually talked to the husband. He hated it. That impressed Smith so much that he now dialogues with customers, probing their motivations, making sure that their decision results from an understanding of the permanency of the undertaking.
Zahna and Harley want to be part of revitalization of Isleton. They both talk about art as something that should be affordable, relatable, and accessible to everyone. Zahna has a wire-wrapping workshop scheduled. Delta-area artist Juliet Lockwood will be teaching a painting class this fall. Zahna hopes to have a maker’s forum. She says that artists need help understanding the business and marketing side of their passion. “It’s so hard to make a living at art,” she notes. “But an understanding of art as a business model can help.”
The couple recently hosted an art show at the Wandering Gypsy for artists who are veterans . They plan to have more shows. Standing in their beautifully appointed gallery, it’s not hard to believe that they will be a force in the revitalization of the town. They have ideas, certainly; but they also have passion, drive, commitment, and dedication — all things that have brought these wandering gypsies to the town which they seem proud to call home.
