Convergence at Cabrillo

Old Lighthouse, 11 x 14", oil on linen panel.  More available Cabrillo work here.

More details about Convergence!  This is going to be a very exciting art event.  It's a partnership of Cabrillo's Artist in Residence program and the Monument Conservancy, with the artist organization A Ship in the Woods.  From their website:  "With 48 established and emerging artists working in tandem with historians and scientists, CONVERGENCE showcases thought-provoking artworks exploring the site from a range of disciplines.  Throughout the park, viewers will be able to experience immersive artworks including video projections on the lighthouse; interactive installations, a secret garden, experimental sound installations, a tea ceremony using endemic plants from the Cabrillo National Monument, large scale exhibits made from recycled plastic, performance art, spoken word, mobile augmented reality, projection mapping, kinetic sculptures, sound and light performances, and opportunities for audience participation during the Nov.14th event."

One of the participating artists is Harrell Fletcher, who was a visiting professor at Oregon State while I was getting my BFA there.  He is an internationally known pioneer of social art, someone who truly makes a difference.  I am gratified to see that the AIR program has grown into something that can involve artists of this stature. I can't wait to see what he and the others come up with for this event.

November 14, 4pm-11pm, artist reception 6pm with current and past AIR's (I'll be there).  More details here, along with directions and a link to buy tickets.  Kids under 12 are free, and the Lighthouse tower will be OPEN!  Bring a flashlight! 

Art in the Park

I've got six paintings exhibited through Sept 8, at the Cabrillo National Monument Visitors Center.  This is the annual Art in the Park event, and the Center is filled with oil paintings from Southern California artists.  These are my six, done during my artist residency at Cabrillo:

Untouched--Intertidal Zone is 20X24", Dudleya Live-Forever and Searchlight Shelter are both 10 X 8", and Stairs on Tidepool Path, Pelican Scanning, and End of Point Haze are all 6 X 8".

To pick up the thread of the last post, a few more thoughts about memory.  We can train ourselves to allow memory a role in our work.  Henri talks about memory training, and so do modern teachers like Kevin Macpherson and Terry Miura.  Henri envisioned a studio where the model would pose in one room, and the students would look and ponder, then go to another room to paint or draw.  Macpherson recommends a similar exercise with landscape--spending 20-30 minutes just meditating on a scene, then going home and painting it from memory.

But why do we need memory when we paint from life?  Well, because sometimes conditions change, or are different to begin with, from what would best express our inner experience of a subject.  And, in the case of plein air painting, there are always some edits and always gaps to fill.  If you can envision it, you can fill that gap and have it speak as clearly as the rest of the elements.  But if you don't have this skill, whatever you improvise will look contrived and not convincing.  It won't fit.

Memory is a skill you need to have in order to speak your personal truth about the subject.  And that's what you're going for--not the truth, YOUR truth.

My upcoming Artist Talk

If you happen to be in the San Diego area, come on by.  Many thanks to Lesley Anderson for putting together this great flyer.  See next post (above) for my suggestions to all future AIR's!

Last Lighthouse Painting

A couple weekends ago, my show was still up at Cabrillo and I painted there on site with the local Meetup group of plein air painters, looking forward to interacting with Park visitors and hopefully sending some of them to the Visitors Center to view the exhibit.  Normally I don't paint that well when I'm mostly devoting my energy to conversing with the visitors, but this one didn't turn out too badly.  It is probably the last lighthouse painting I'm going to do for quite some time.

12" X 9", o/cp. Sold.

Nexus

20" X 24", oil/stretched canvas. Sold, private collection.

This painting is the centerpiece of the Cabrillo Series.  This is how it looks there mosts days, overcast with a cool breeze off the ocean.  Included are most of the elements which not only identify this place, they define it.  

The Old Lighthouse still stands watch over the Point.  The radar towers are active and maintained by the US Navy, who is responsible for establishing and helping maintain the Point Loma Ecological Preserve.  Coastal scrub and Shaw’s Agave, endangered native plants, flourish here.  The viewing stations overlooking the ocean at right offer information and an ideal vantage point to those who watch migrating Pacific Grey Whales passing nearby between December and March.  The beautiful crumbling sandstone bluffs remind us that all of this is ephemeral.  We can feel the importance of protecting and supporting this place here and now, as it continues to protect and enrich our lives.

The reception for the show is tomorrow, so with this post I conclude the Cabrillo series.  You can see all 26 paintings in the show here and all work done on the subject of Cabrillo here.

Old Lighthouse with Torrey Pines

9 X 12", oil/canvas panel

This started as a plein air painting at a very popular spot near the Lighthouse, with scores of visitors constantly walking by and stopping to chat.  I absolutely love interacting with the visitors there, they're from all over the world and are always so appreciative and complimentary.  But the painting usually suffers a lot due to my inattention and lack of focus, so this panel was headed for the bin when I got home.  At first I tried to salvage it, and only made it worse.  Then I completely changed it, moving the lighthouse to the left, changing the vantage point, and including much more of the trees.  Sometimes you have to completely let go before things will begin to come around.  The only part left from the original painting is the small dark area at the lower right, but now I'm really happy with it.  It would be interesting to x-ray this one.

Bayside Trail Revisited

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.  Studio paintings done from studies have their own unique identity.  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.

Spirit of Cabrillo

12 X 16", oil/canvas panel.

Visitors enjoy a clear view south toward Mexico, as a military transport plane (probably a C-130) comes in for a landing at North Island Naval Air Station.  North Island is a stone’s throw from Ballast Point, probably the site where Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo made landfall in 1542.  The commemorative statue of Cabrillo was donated by the Portuguese government (Cabrillo was Portuguese).  The original statue, created in 1939, eroded over time and was replaced in 1988 with this exact replica, made in Portugal.

Egret Surveying Zone 3

12" X 16", oil/canvas panel

This is from a photo taken during a visit to my friends at the Coast Guard outpost, not far from the New Lighthouse.  Shorebirds are a beautiful presence at the Monument, and their numbers are closely monitored by Rangers and volunteers.  A count is taken by hand every time there is a low tide (exposing the tidepools) and a tally is kept of which birds, and how many, visit each of the three zones of tidepools.   This Great Egret is unconcerned with the solar-powered monitoring station right beside him.  He was a bit concerned with us, though, so we took a photo and quietly moved away so as not to disturb him.

Darkling

20" X 24", oil/stretched canvas. Sold

Today I  hung the last three paintings in the Cabrillo series.  There are 26 paintings at the Monument Visitors Center, and one in the show at L Street Fine Art (shown second from right, top row, on their website).  Now I can finally get the blog caught up with all the work I haven't posted here yet.  

This is a Darkling beetle, an abundant species of the genus Eleodes which can be seen scurrying all over the area here.  They are also known as Clown Beetles or Stinkbugs, and are unique among our local beetle species for their daytime activity.  They move about fearlessly because they have a pretty effective defense mechanism:  when alarmed, they will stop and raise their rear end and spray an offensive substance to foil their pursuers.  They're large (about an inch and a half long), harmless, and make a beautiful, satiny black color note against warm hues of the sandstone rock and sand.  

I love insects, as well as reptiles, amphibians, and birds.  They're beautiful things.

The Show is Up!

We hung the show at Cabrillo National Monument yesterday, and in the next couple days I'll get caught up on the most recent work that I haven't posted here yet.

This is the flyer (created by Ranger Tavio) to promote the show:

And here are some shots of the gallery and the installation process:

Ranger Tavio (right) and I, hanging a painting.  Below: the gallery, looking left and right.  One could not ask for a more beautiful setting.  It really adds dimension to the work, seeing the actual landscape where many of the paintings were created.

This is the information table, where there is now an exhibition catalog, business cards, my statement and CV.   That painting (yet to be posted here) is 20 X 24, and is really the centerpiece of the show.  It sums up my intention in this body of work.

If you would like to see all 26 works in the exhibition with my descriptions of each painting, you can see them on my website at this link.

A special shout-out to my sainted husband, who was instrumental in the success of this 4-hour installation process and who also took these pictures.

More soon.

Lighthouse from the Bluffs

This is the back of the Lighthouse, viewed from the bluffs, done during the last paint-out with the Meetup group. 

12" X 9", o/cp. (Sold, private collection)

The intermittent fog and hazy sun made for an interesting atmosphere, but the challenge was to render that white building against a cool bright sky in weak sunlight, and to push it back so that the bluffs would get the attention.   This is a study for a larger work in progress, so I wrestled with this a bit.

Painting for a residency feels a bit like a combination of commissioned work (and it is, in a way, since one painting will be donated to the Monument's permanent collection) and painting to please a certain audience (the park visitors).  I have my own concept, which I've talked about here, and have mainly expressed it with subjects that interest me.  The response has been overwhelmingly positive, though admittedly everyone still wants to see more of the lighthouse.  And that's okay.

Old Lighthouse

11 X 14", o/linen panel.  The endangered coastal scrub on the rocky hillside below the iconic old lighthouse is wild and beautiful.  Radar towers at left belong to the Navy, which has been instrumental in establishing and co-managing the Point Loma Ecological Reserve.  The Torrey pines near the building were planted in the 1930's; we can't be sure if there were ever Torrey pines naturally occurring here.  They were very widespread in this region millions of years ago, but currently there are only two remaining native populations.  One is Torrey Pines State Reserve, a few miles up the coast, and the other is on Santa Rosa Island near Los Angeles.

Cabrillo Show and new work

I've been working feverishly to finish some larger works for the upcoming solo show at Cabrillo Monument, and will be posting those very soon.  The show runs January 14-31.

Here are updated versions of a couple small paintings.

 End of Point, hazy morning color.  8" X 6", o/cp. Sold, private collection.

Winding Tidepool Path.  6" X 8", o/cp.

Untouched

20" X 24", oil on stretched canvas.  There are tidepools and shoreline below the "new" lighthouse which are not accessible to the general public.  The effect of this was obvious when I saw these beautiful stones and shells laying there undisturbed. Two of the three "zones" of tidepools at the monument are open to the public, and even though there is a strict rule against lifting or disturbing anything there, those areas are pretty well picked clean.  I loved having the chance to see these natural ocean-polished stones, shells, and even coral.

Because this is a larger painting, the resolution of my camera doesn't pick up the detail too well--so here are some detail shots.

Thanks again to the very gracious Coast Guard family who granted me the opportunity to see and paint these beautiful scenes and objects by the lower Lighthouse.

Searchlight Shelter

10" X 8", oil on panel.  Sold, private collection.

Along the Bayside Trail at Cabrillo Monument, there is this interesting large metal enclosure built deep into the hillside.  It's the Searchlight Shelter; more about that further down. 

To show a step in the process, here's how I started this painting on site, quickly noting some color and value relationships and placing landmarks in a composition that I was happy with.  Then, using a photo reference at home, I corrected drawing errors and fleshed out the color.  Now you're probably wondering, what the heck is this thing?

Click on the image to see a readable enlargement.  The searchlight was on rails, of which there are remnants visible coming out the front of the enclosure.  The rest of the track is gone, the cement retaining wall has eroded away/been buried by sandstone erosion, but the shelter remains and its former path is an integral part of the Bayside Trail.  In addition, the area has become a case study in the effects of habitat disruption, to help us learn more about the importance of preservation.

Climb to the New Lighthouse

Looking up at the "new" lighthouse (built in 1891) from the shore below.  The cliff is not too high, but steep enough such that the only way to climb it is with the help of that rope.   8" X 6", oil/canvas panel.

Ever wonder what a foghorn looks like?

Those openings are the "speakers", and the concrete slab probably helps project and disperse the sound.  And it is LOUD, audible for miles.

The lighthouse and the foghorn do all they can to warn mariners away from the rocks below, but every so often, there's someone who disregards the warnings.  That's when this happens:

A fiberglass carcass on the rip rap.

Below the "New" Lighthouse

This portion of the shore is not open to the public, so I'm fortunate to have access to it via a very kind member of a Coast Guard family in residence there.  The shore is really pounded by the ocean, being right on the tip of the point, so large boulders (known as "rip rap") have been put down to slow the erosion.  There are substantial colonies of endangered Brown Pelicans here, and they frequently cruise past with their wingtips just clearing the waves.   6" X 8", oil/canvas panel. Sold, private collection.

Sunbath

I have a thing for reptiles:  I just love them.  This very young Western Fence Lizard was catching some rays to warm him/herself in the sun.  They are plentiful at Cabrillo (an important element in the food chain), often spreading themselves out flat on a warm spot.  Sometimes they stop right in the middle of the path and fall asleep in the sun.  You can almost touch them before they wake up and scurry away.  10" X 8", oil on panel. Sold, private collection

Old Lighthouse Parlor

 

10" X 8", oil on panel.   The interior of the Old Lighthouse was also the living quarters for the lighthouse keeper and his family.  In the late 1800's when this was an active lighthouse, the lighting was by lamplight, so probably never very bright inside.  It's been kept pretty much as it was, almost a time capsule.  I'm looking at it through a plexiglass viewing window, and the dark atmosphere is probably pretty true to how they lived.  

6" X 8", oil/cp.  These are the brass oilcans that the Keeper used to replenish the oil that illuminated the Fresnel Lens atop the Old Lighthouse.  They are beautiful objects.