The fine art of giving

A VISUAL ARTIST since 1980, Jan Clizer is going to give back to a cause that gave so much to her family.

Clizer is a fine artist who also does a series of whimsical depictions of frogs in various human situations.

The series, called “Toadage,” has been printed into 11-inch-by-14-inch posters that retail for $10, 8-by-10 matted prints that retail for $7 and greeting cards for $1.75. The Toadage series is Clizer’s bread and butter, but she plans to donate 30 percent of all the profits from the series to an organization that helps provide emergency medical services to those in need.

In her home of Coeur d’Alene, said Clizer, that would be Kootenai County Assistance.

Clizer’s interest in this type of assistance is rooted in personal experience.

In 1997, Clizer’s only son, Sawyer, then 13, had multiple neurosurgeries due to an injury playing basketball. The family had no medical insurance. They were living in Bonner County at the time, and Bonner County helped with the hospital and doctor bills, working with the providers to get them to help out.

“There are such a large percentage of us in the United States that are in the same boat,” Clizer said. “This facility is here, funded from several sources, and it’s here for people like us when there is an emergency. It’s given our family so much.”

Sawyer is now 21 and fully recovered, according to Clizer. He is a full-time student at North Idaho College, fights forest fires in the summer and is interested in a career in radiology.

Her only daughter, Jessica, 23, also benefited. She had a genetic defect of the jaw that was causing erosion of the back teeth. Jessica works full time and goes to school.

When the series of surgeries on Sawyer was over, Clizer decided to pursue her art.

“I came to the conclusion that life was never going to be perfect, so I decided to pursue my fine art full time,” Clizer said.

She traveled all over the Inland Northwest and the West marketing her art. In 2002 she took a break. Her lifetime dream was to explore Scotland because of her heritage and because she has always been fascinated with Celtic music. An accomplished musician, Clizer plays the fiddle and was in the local band Rare Mountain Aire for 10 years.

What started out as a seven-week trip with 40 rolls of film and a backpack turned into a year in a small village called Auchenblae, population 700.

“The focus was to go to music festivals and take lots of reference photos to do paintings, fine art,” she said.

The village embraced her. She taught fiddle to 14 students, ranging in age from 4 to 52, and was able to paint and focus on her fine art. Colorful harbor scenes, landscapes, Celtic-themed instrument close-ups, vibrant florals, and human and animal portraits are a result of her stay in the United Kingdom.

“Arts and music are so deeply entrenched in their culture; they’re so enthusiastic about it,” Clizer said. “There’s been an incredible resurgence of interest in traditional music. Everyone wants their children to learn some sort of traditional instrument.”

Auchenblae also served as inspiration to Clizer to give back. She was moved by the townspeople and the respect and support they had for each other.

“People there just seem to have an ingrained respect for each other’s humanity,” she said. “The teenagers are still snotty, but you can get through the walls much easier.”

The feeling of community made her stop and think. The people of Auchenblae looked out for one another; even if they disagreed on issues, they still took care of their neighbors.

Clizer has quite a following for the Toadage line, to the point of having clients who have decorated their entire bathrooms and rec rooms with her frogs. To view the Toadage line, see her Web site, www.toadage.com. Pieces can be ordered by calling the artist at (208) 640-6368.

She will debut her Scotland paintings June 5 during the Third Annual Shabby to Chic Shoppe Tour of Homes, at a home on the tour at 1310 Front St. in Coeur d’Alene. These original paintings are primarily in oil or acrylic; the original Toadage pictures are acrylic or water color. Her art is also marketed in the United Kingdom.

Clizer donates a piece of fine art each year to a charity of her choice. This year she gave to the Lance Armstrong Foundation Cancer Challenge. The painting will be sold at a dinner and auction May 20 in Coeur d’Alene.

Clizer is living her dream now of splitting her time between Coeur d’Alene and Scotland.