Featuring artwork by Proprietor and Artist Kate Solari Baker, the historic estate’s Lark Room will showcase a number of archival prints from her “Noxious Weeds and Roadside Grasses” series, beginning October 26th, 2024
Calistoga, CA – October 24, 2024 – Larkmead Vineyards is pleased to announce the opening of a new art installation at its historic estate by Proprietor and lauded artist Kate Solari Baker. Debuting on October 26, 2024, the gallery showcases a number of archival prints, spanning decades, from her series of chalk pastels titled “Noxious Weeds and Roadside Grasses.” Each piece depicts a well-known Napa Valley plant such as rabbitsfoot grass, Queen Anne’s lace, and teasels, and reflects on her family’s reverence for the beauty of Napa Valley and the Larkmead estate.
Having grown up on the family vineyard, “Our roots run deep,” Solari Baker says. “And yet, we sit lightly on this land, allowing its natural habitat to thrive.” This ideology guides Solari Baker’s artwork and the family’s forward-thinking farming practices, which have garnered acclaim for their strength in sustainability, organics, and land stewardship.
“I grew up surrounded by the breathtaking splendor of Napa Valley and the wildness of my family’s vineyard, and those landscapes have always inspired me,” Solari Baker muses. “This collection brings to light the hidden pieces of our ecosystem that are so integral to a thriving balance of plant and animal life.”
Selections from Solari Baker’s new installation will also grace the labels of future wine releases from the estate’s respected Research Block, a three-acre vineyard planted to explore how different grape varieties grow in shifting climate conditions. With a nod to the future, the 2023 Estate Chenin Blanc was released this fall, and is the first of these bottlings to showcase the artwork inspired by the beauty of the estate. This synergy of art and new-varietal wine embody the family’s ethos of stewarding a dynamic ecosystem, while still evolving, so the land can thrive for generations to come.
A true family operation, Ann Baker, Kate Solari Baker’s daughter and the Landscape Architect behind Larkmead’s lush gardens and intricately planted grounds, also upholds the established ethos. “What we’ve done with the land—from restoring native habitats along the Napa River and Selby Creek, to eliminating invasive species like vinca and Himalayan blackberry—very much mirrors the theme of my mother’s art: to tread lightly, to restore what is natively there, and to amplify nature’s voice to reawaken that deep connection,” Baker shares.
Baker also notes the artistic synergy between her landscaping, the vineyard, and her mother’s artwork. “My mother’s art and my landscaping and restoration work at Larkmead have been in dialogue over many years. Her pastel drawings of native grasses, with their vibrant colors, energy, and movement directly inspired the design of our tasting room garden that welcomes guests to the estate,” Baker says. “The garden is alive with pollinators and wildlife, and there’s an energy that invites those who enter to pause in thrall at the immediacy and intricate detail of nature.”
From the welcoming gardens, and biodiverse grounds and vineyards, to the stunning collection of Solari Baker’s art now displayed in the Lark Room, visitors to Larkmead can fully immerse themselves in wine, art, and nature. “What I hope is that people will experience how the natural world, in all its forms, deserves to be cherished and protected,” Solari Baker says.
Select prints from Kate Solari Baker’s “Noxious Weeds and Roadside Grasses” series will be available for purchase in the Lark Room gallery at Larkmead Vineyards. Guests are welcome to embrace the rich heritage of the estate. Schedule a private tasting experience to visit the Lark Room art gallery at www.larkmead.com.
About Larkmead Vineyards
Larkmead Vineyards is one of the oldest family-owned wineries in Napa Valley. Originally founded in 1895, Larkmead has been under the stewardship of three generations of the Solari family starting in 1948. In that time, the family has farmed, replanted, and nurtured the 115-acre vineyard to create some of the most recognized estate-grown and produced wines from Napa Valley. www.larkmead.com
