Rina Gardener

Rina was born into a large, eclectic, and diversely talented family. She is the fifth of eight children of Frank and Kate Klemic, a loving, madcap couple who wanted to be close to nature, so they retired to the intersection of Jawbone Canyon and Kelso Valley Roads. The Klemic kids had a wild childhood, full of adventure, all manner of pets, and plenty of magic. It was in this environment that Rina's natural talent for the arts was fostered, accounting for her incredible imagination.

She worked a variety of jobs over the years, including a career as a hairstylist and stints as a receptionist, Annie Lennox impersonator, and Christmas Elf. Then, in the late 1980's and early 1990's, she began to put her artistic skill directly to use. She worked at Labels of Love in Santa Monica doing calligraphy and hand-made stationery; meanwhile, she could be found doing paint restoration on Old West paraphernalia such as wagons and traditional signage. On top of that, she volunteered at El Rincon Elementary School to be the art teacher for her son's Kindergarten and First Grade classes.

Soon after, she found steady work with Joseph Somers Studios, where she was able to utilize both her painting and design skills to great effect. In 1995, she took her portfolio around to the movie studios and found work as a motion picture set painter. At the end of that year, her father fell ill and she joined her parents in their remote Mojave home. During this time, she commuted back to Culver City when she had work painting sets, eventually earning membership in IATSE Local 729, representing Hollywood Set Painters and Sign Writers.

In 1996, Frank Klemic Jr. passed away, but Rina stayed with her mother in Kelso Valley. It was in that most difficult of times and unlikeliest of places, on the porch of a cabin Frank had built himself, without the luxuries of running water or electricity, that the first piece of furniture came from Spider Web Stewdios. Inauspicious though things may have seemed, fate was in the works. After she and Kate moved back to Culver City, she continued to work in the studios, working on dozens of feature films and countless TV shows and pilots.

Rina has always stayed close to her family, living with sister Teresa and mother Kate, painting sets with her daughter Teresa, constantly scheming with sister Helen, taking classes in floral arrangement with sister Fredericka... and that's to say nothing of her other activities. She is an avid reader, part of the local library's Mystery of the Month Club; a founding member of the Kelso Valley Archaeological Society and the Lightnin' Bug Mining Co.; a licenced cosmetologist; a former student of accordion master Milton Mann; a current student of magic with The Great Kendrake; participant in the Owl Research Institute; and a member of several organizations, including the International Society of Cryptozoology, Bat Conservation International, Uncle Milton's Ant Farm, the Single Action Shooting Society, and the Ohio Art Etch-A-Sketch Club. She has also taught herself Braille, sign language, Morse code, and shorthand, and someday hopes to communicate fluently in any of those.

In addition to her daughter, Teresa, and her son, Adam, Rina is proud parent of Renfield, a rare, domesticated Northern Pygmy Owl.