By Renee Targos
Ballerina Flora June Dobry (Plumb’s mother) was the first to encourage Plumb’s artistic talent “by handing her paper and pencil” to keep her occupied. Starting acting at age 6, the daughter of RCA executive Neely Plumb has become a great observer of people and design.
Playing the part of “Jan Brady” in the Brady Bunch series, Plumb learned from her instructor, Francis Whitfield, during summer holidays to experiment with different crafts and art. Starting in watercolors, then acrylics, then casein, and settling into using oils for her still life pieces, Plumb says oils give her the best longstanding color.
Living in Laguna Beach, Calif., a town known for its many galleries and artists, Plumb thrives on capturing the still moments of life. Her fascination with design is what leads her to paint the still life subject matter of coffee cups, pitchers, and fruit bowls. “I frequent cafes a lot,” says Plumb. “I try to focus on the everyday moments of life. I guess it’s about that quiet moment in a café or having a good conversation with a friend, where the eye sets on objects of the table.”
Interested in objects and architecture from the 1940s, Plumb used to collect objects for her still life scenes. Now she takes her camera on trips, so she can capture the moment of inspiration.
Such was the time when she visited Scottsdale’s Hotel Valley Ho. “We came to town to meet with Bonner David Galleries. The Valley Ho’s decor looked really cool, and we could bring our German Shepherd, so we stayed there,” says Plumb. “A desk in our room had this great red serving pitcher on it, so I took pictures of it for reference.”
Voila. The inspiration became the painting Valley Ho Red Pitcher.
Later Plumb and her husband, Kenneth Pace, visited the Valley Ho again, and Plumb has been inspired by the hotel’s creamers, salt & pepper shakers and blue pitchers. “Painting is all about light and shadow, and the more emphasis you put on those things is how you get the story of the painting across,” says Plumb. “However, it’s a silent story.”
Fascinated with illustrators like Norman Rockwell and Maxfield Parrish, Plumb says, “They produced great art on deadline. I admire being able to take a project and make it work.”
Working on deadlines for art shows is challenging. “I rarely have an average day of painting or have several days in a row that I can paint,” says Plumb. “Life intervenes and I have to stop, so I take notes on where I am in a painting, so I can come back and pick up where I left off. I try to start by 9 a.m. and work until the afternoon.”
She says its “sheer force of will” that gets her back to finishing a painting. After the joy of creating a piece, it takes discipline to get it perfect. The same is true for her other artistic endeavors.
Still working as an actress, Plumb keeps her eyes open for television and film projects that interest her. Recently appearing in a Days of Our Lives episode, Plumb says that acting and painting are similar on one point: Knowing that disappointment is part of the end game. “People aren’t always going to like your work and getting the job or selling a painting can be the most difficult part.”
She says it can be difficult balancing her emotions for painting and acting. “Actors have to be open, vulnerable people, so it’s hard when you get rejected,” says Plumb. “Actors seem so unstable, but it’s hard to be emotionally available to do your job and then separate yourself from the business. In painting, I’m the only one who sees it (or my husband), so by the time others see it, I’ve got my emotional armor on.”
Plumb says that in painting, she has more control of the project because it’s her own. However, working in acting, “if they don’t want you, it’s harder because it’s face to face. You can tell right away when they don’t like you; they won’t tell you what you need to do … It’s almost the minute you walk in the door, they know whether they want you or not. In painting, if someone doesn’t like my paintings, it’s easier. Most people are complimentary. Either way, it’s out of my hands. I keep trying.”
She says she keeps up with both arts because they each have a place in her life. “The painting I can do anytime and can control the output,” says Plumb. “Acting is good since it’s so familiar.”
As an avid reader and traveler, Plumb is constantly educating herself in painting by quizzing painters, like Southern California Plein Air painter Michael Obermeyer or still life painter Scott Moore. Both artists were former illustrators.
As for her own work, Plumb continues to strive
to improve. “I’m not a photo realist. I can’t see myself painting that teeny-tiny lettering,” says Plumb. “I’m between realism and impressionism. I want to paint loose enough to be really evocative, but I do paint subjects such as [my painting, “Tile Floor”], where it got very detailed.”
She says discovering a style and subject matter that produces “a rhythm and feel” makes it easier to stick with it through the hard times. “I have been teaching myself to paint since I was a child,” says Plumb. “I’ve tried several mediums over the years, and had many starts and stops to get where I am now.”
Some of the press has mentioned that Plumb is trying to seperate herself from her days as a Brady. She says, “I don’t think that I’ve tried to distance myself from the Brady Bunch. I realize that it was and is a big part of my life.”
As for Brady Bunch fans coming to see her for her art show, Plumb says, “If my being famous brings someone in to look at my paintings—that’s great. Often, that’s also why they buy, which is fine with me.”
Plumb will be appearing on Oct. 16 (6-9 p.m.) at Bonner David Galleries, 7040 E. Main St., in her one-woman exhibit, Room Service.
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 Eve Plumb in her Laguna Beach studio.
“I have been teaching myself to paint since I was a child,” says Plumb. “I’ve tried several mediums over
the years, and
had many starts and stops to get
where I am now.”
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