April 2022

141 Feet Above Garrapata

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141 Feet Above Garrapata, 14×18, oil on canvas

One of the spectacular coastlines in the world, the Big Sur coastline runs for 90 miles on the west central coast of California.  California Highway One winds along its length and is flanked on one side by the majestic Santa Lucia Mountains and on the other by the rocky Pacific Coast.   Garrapata State Park extends along the coast on the northern part of the coastline and I am fortunate to live just half an hour away from this spectacular area. 

Out painting with the California Art Club last January, I flew my drone for a quick flight.  You can read about that excursion here, plus a short video I made, shown below.

This painting is a frame from the drone video I took that day, and can actually be seen around the midpoint of the video below.  I have occasionally been doing paintings from a drone’s eye perspective, the first being “The World’s First Plein Air Drone Selfie” here.

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Natividad, “A Time to Heal”

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I am honored to have two paintings in the Natividad “A Time to Heal” MBPAPA show. Natividad Medical Center, 1441 Constitution Blvd., Salinas, CA. The show runs for an entire year, May 30, 2022 – May 30, 2023. At this point they are not sure if an artists reception will be scheduled, depending on current covid condition.

Marina Beach Sunset, 12×16, oil on panel
El Camino, 16x20, oil on board
El Camino, 16×20, oil on board

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A Beautiful Day

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Lover’s Point, 8×16, oil on panel, plein air

In the spring, the ice plant blooms in Perkins Park, Pacific Grove, CA, covering much of the park in a blanket of reds, pinks, and purples. I had been meaning to make the short drive there to paint, and a group paint-out by the Monterey Bay Plein Air Association gave me an excuse.

Generally, I consider these outings as more social events than trying to produce a sellable painting.  This time though, I wanted to spend a little more time trying to get a good piece, so arrived early to catch the morning light.  

I settled in painting a backlit view of Lover’s Point.  It was a wonderful day!  It was difficult painting looking directly into the sun as I am still trying to find a good pair of outdoor spectacles since my cataract surgery a year ago. The painting was turning into a muddy mess. I kept at it though, and got it back on track.

After an hour or so, I didn’t see any other fellow painters, so walked around, and found just a few on the other side of the point.  There were only about 4 of us total, as far as I can tell.  

The painting turned out good…a keeper!  The above is a little over two hours work.  I will touch it up just a bit in the studio, but could stand as-is.

Here are a few more pictures of the day…

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An Entirely new Art Form Breakthrough

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Freedom!, 24×36, oil on road

Marina, CA, April 1, 2022..   World renowned, award winning artist Donald Neff has just invented an entirely new genre of art.  We think it will take the art world by storm. Art and painting constantly evolve and transition to ideas and areas we may not have imagined just a few years before.  Think Picasso, who as a teen could paint like Raphael, and with no where to go was a forerunner of modern art.  Pollock stumbled upon drip painting.  Hunter Biden blew the art world away with his doodling.

After spending two years virtually locked up due to covid restrictions, Neff was yearning to be free.  “I just wanted to be free to paint, so I strapped an easel on my Harley, took off and started painting”, Neff says.  Neff frequently rides his Harley, including painting trips, but has never painted while actually riding.  “I have always wondered what a painting would look like if I did it while cruising down the road, so rigged an easel on my gas tank to paint while on the road.”   Neff continues “it was so great, because as soon as I got to my first actual painting location, I already had one completed.”

“Freedom!” is Neff’s first ‘zoom painting’. According to Neff, it was a little difficult concentrating on the painting while staying on the bike, but he did it without any scrapes or accidents. For such a big invention, Neff also chose a big canvas, 24×36, and it was a little hard keeping it steady in the constant headwind. Like a sail, Neff had to keep correcting course to stay in his lane. Neff says, “I also had to circle around a lot to keep painting the same scene, but didn’t get too dizzy.” 

You can read more about Neff’s other painting trips on the Harley here.

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