Of Rabbits, Turtles and the "Outlaw" Farmins

I remember writing a Spokesman-Review column about Tammy Farmin a few years ago. That was when she had created the colorful metal banners that hang around Sandpoint. Tammy's an "outlaw" in our family, and she's a talented artist. Well, she's not exactly on the "Ten Most Wanted" list, but her artwork apparently seems to be in great demand.

Let me explain the "outlaw" status. Tammy's grandmother Esther Lines had a brother George Johnson. He was an engineer for Boeing, and he married my dad's sister Wilma Tibbs. So, because of that marital connection, we've always said the Lineses and all their progeny were shirt-tail relatives, but I've also thought it was more fun to call 'em "outlaws" rather than loosely connected in-laws. Didya follow all that?

We have another outlaw relationship with Tammy. Our Annie Dog lived at Tammy's sister Terri's house before Terri decided Annie "needed a home in the country." So, we've had Annie for a number of years. Both her name and her canine antics come up occasionally when we visit with the Farmin family.

Now speaking of Farmins, they have some pretty well-fixed roots here in Sandpoint. Tammy has some ancestors (L.D. and Ellamae) who pretty much laid out the town when they came here from the east as railroad agents back in the late 1800s. So, I guess that means that our outlaw status (which Ellamae pretty much thought was standard for all the riffraff running around Sandpoint at the time) makes us sorta related to some founding parents in Sandpoint. Didya get all that straight?

Well, rather than beating around the bush, I'll get back to the orginal subject. Tammy's an artist. Tammy's part of the Farmin family, and Tammy's got some new artwork to add to the town. Her dad Ted sent me a press release about some public art that's going to be dedicated at Sandpoint's Farmin Park Aug. 26 during the Farmers' Market.

Tammy crafted the art, and I've got some pictures of it but can't copy and paste it to the blog cuz it's on a PDF. Anyway, there's a bronze rabbit lounging in the grass and a turtle in slow pursuit. We all know the story. The turtle wins while the rabbit lies there and thinks about what he's gonna go buy at the Farmer's Market.

It's appropriately called "Pace Your Self," which nobody bothered to tell the rabbit when he set off in the famous race where he was supposed to be a shoe-in. Since nobody told the rabbit he oughta get off his behinder, go purchase some of the Bear's (Hope's Icehouse Pizza guy) pastries and get on with the race, he lost really bad, and the slow, slow tortoise who knew enough to bypass the Farmer's Market food altogether, won hands down.

Now for all who are getting disgusted with Marianne's digressions this morning, here's the serious stuff the City of Sandpoint put out about Tammy and her sculpture:

For Immediate Release: Public Art Unveiling at Farmin Park in Sandpoint!
Date: 8/10/06

The citizens of Sandpoint are invited to join the City of Sandpoint Mayor
Raymond P. Miller, Artist Tammy Farmin, and representatives of the Sandpoint
Arts Commission, Rotary Club, and DSBA Saturday August 26th 2006 to dedicate
a set of bronze sculptures titled, Pace Your Self. The dedication will take
place at the clock tower in Farmin Park at 11 a.m. during the Farmers
Market. Pace Your Self, is the newest addition to Sandpoint's growing public
art collection.

The clock tower funded by the Rotary Club of Sandpoint was installed at the
tip of Farmin Park, across the street from the Jeff Jones Town Square in the
heart of downtown Sandpoint. The clock tower was both a contribution to the
Sandpoint Downtown Revitalization effort (begun in 2002) and a commemoration
of Rotary International's 100 year celebration.

When Bob Lindemann passed away in November 2004, Rotary President Ryan
Luttmann suggested that Rotary include an installation of public art in the
clock tower in honor of Bob. Bob was a Rotary member, and long-time member
(and board member) of the Pend Oreille Arts Council, and an artist.

Sandpoint's Arts Commission in cooperation with the Rotary Club of Sandpoint
sent out RFP's/ Call to Artists in Late September of 2005 and Artist Tammy
Farmin was selected through a juried competition for her proposal, a
sculpture titled: Pace Your Self. Tammy's idea began with the clock and the
childhood folk story of "The Tortoise and the Hare." In memory of Bob, she
expanded on those concepts by recognizing the delicate balance Bob always
wove between time and his daily pursuits.

Tammy attributes the support of her friends, family, and the clientele of
her business in real estate to giving her the time to donate and set aside
for creating this wonderful addition to public art in Sandpoint. Thrilled
and honored at having been chosen to create a piece for the Rotary Clock
Tower, Tammy said,

" I look forward to the enjoyment children will receive from climbing on the
tortoise. It reminds me of when I was a kid climbing on Blacky and Sandy,
the horses at Harold's Grocery Store."

This project was funded in part by the Idaho Commission on the Arts, the
National Endowment for the Arts, the Rotary Club of Sandpoint, and
Sandpoint's Art by the Inch fund. For more information on Art by the Inch
or to donate to the fund for future public art projects visit:
www.cityofsandpoint.com and link to the Arts Commission.

By the way, these pieces of art look mighty fine in the photographs. I can't wait to see them in real life, so I'll make an effort to get down there on Aug. 26 and give my outlaw cousin a big pat on the back for her latest Farmin family contribution to the town her ancestors helped establish.