Holly Harman moved from the San Fernando Valley in California to Prescott four years ago.  She is a graduate of the University of Arizona.  Holly grew up with a family who frequently traveled throughout the southwest.  Both parents were avid photographers and her mother also worked in oils.  Throughout the years she has continued her travels in the southwest as well as in Europe especially Italy, photographing and then later painting from many of those photographs.  Holly began her painting career in oils receiving instruction from artist Ronnie Leberthon.   In the last fifteen years she has turned to transparent watercolor, and considers it now to be her medium of choice.   She has taken workshops from Joe Garcia, Adele Earnshaw, Gerald Brommer, Tony Couch, Carl Purcell, Brenda Swenson, and Betty Carr. 

Holly was a member of the Valley Watercolor Society in the San Fernando Valley for a number of years and has taken a number of awards in their art shows.  Immediately after moving to Prescott, Holly joined Mountain Artists Guild, has shown in the gallery, and taken a number of their workshops.

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Richard Burton (1821-1890) the British explorer, in searching for the source of the Nile, wrote:

Of the gladdest moments in human life, methinks, is the departure upon a distant journey into unknown lands. Shaking off with one mighty effort the fetters of Habit, the leaden weight of Routine, the cloak of many Cares, and the slavery of Home, man feels once more happy. The blood flows with the fast circulation of childhood. Excitement lends unwonted vigour to the muscle, and the sudden sense of freedom adds a cubit to the mental stature. A fresh dawns the morn of life. Again the bright world is beautiful to the eye, and the glorious face of nature gladdens the soul. A journey, in fact, appeals to Imagination, to Memory, to Hope, the sister graces of our mortal being.

Pretty lofty thoughts but they give me a sense of anticipation. Our family is “getting off the Ranch” for a temporary change to tropical scenery but I take with me a curiosity gleaned from living in the high desert at Talking Rock Ranch.

Since moving here last summer, I’ve acquired an eye for things to explore, many of which delivered a “high” of discovery. Some discoveries are accompanied by a buzz of adrenaline, such as the summer afternoon when a tarantula ambled beneath my patio chair as I sat reading. And, I’ve had to make my peace with some of my discoveries, like the gekkos that I’ve found in the sink, on top of the bed, and even under our Christmas tree.

One of the unique benefits of being at Talking Rock Ranch is that there is so much to discover and explore – the terrain, the history, and particularly the dramatic western vistas. You don’t have to get in a car or on a plane – just step outdoors and the opportunities to discover and explore open up to you.

As we return home from our tropical respite, I won’t have the usual foreboding of returning to the “slavery of Home” but rather a beckoning to the wondrous landscapes of our desert home at Talking Rock Ranch. We will return happily to our interesting and engaging friends and the captivating surroundings that make the Ranch our new and unique home.

Cyndi Starr

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