12" X 16", oil/canvas panel
One of my favorite plein air studies in this Cabrillo series was the Bayside Trail 6" X 8", painted on site. It really captured the feeling of being there, experiencing the place, with fresh subtle (true) color. Studio paintings done from studies must have their own unique identity. They can never be copies of the source study, nor should they be! Each work should stand on its own as a separate, different entity, with its own merit. Like a sibling, but not a twin. Because I wasn't looking at the actual scene when I painted this larger version, I took some liberties to give it its own personality--while still retaining the presence of the place. A remembered impression, rather than an observed one.
About the Bayside Trail: This former Army road now provides a wonderful 2-mile hike for visitors, with information plaques describing the vegetation, birds, and other wildlife they might see there. This vantage point is at the end of the trail, looking back toward the starting point (at upper right, near the radar tower and Old Lighthouse). Behind me was Ballast Point, where Cabrillo made landfall in 1542, which is now part of the Navy's SPAWAR division.
