Spaces and Places Juried Exhibit in Danville Ca June 29th to August 10

Zuma Canyon 14 x 21 Plein Air Watercolor

This painting of a ridge in Malibu was selected by Juror Dewitt Cheng( he is a San Francisco-based artist, writer and curator) for the "Spaces and Places" exhibit at the town-sponsored art space right here is Danville.

The ridges in Southern California have less vegetation and their lovely fractured geometry makes the tectonic forces used in their creation almost completely visible.
This painting is getting quite the exhibition profile: It was selected by Michael Zakian ( Curator of the Wiesman) for the "On Location in Malibu" exhibit at the Weisman Museum of Art at Pepperdine University and by Phillip Linares, Curator of the Oakland Museum of Art for the "Imagine California" Statewide Exhibit.

  Artwork that was considered for this exhibition depicted either a real, invented or a psychological space or place to fit within the theme, Spaces and Places. The juror for this exhibition, DeWitt Cheng, a San Francisco-based art critic and writer for various art publications and web media, selected 48
pieces of artwork from 41 artists.


Opening Reception

Friday, June 29 from 5:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m.

Village Theater Gallery, Front Street Danville

"Zuma Canyon" also appears in the June/ July Issue of Plein Air Magazine

Two new Mount Diablo Paintings

Before the Rains 14 x 21

Mount Diablo Blue 14 x 14

I've been painting pretty close to home ,these are both from the West Side of Danville, "Before the Rains" was painted at the Eugene O'Neill National historic site above Danville and "Mount Diablo Blue" was painted a few blocks away. Both were started on location and finished in the studio. I was interested in how the summer fog softened the colors in " Mount Diablo Blue" and how the overcast rain clouds and late fall vegetation made the mountain quietly rich and glowing in "Before the Rains". 
I can't wait to get out there and paint when the rain stops!

Sacred Mountain: a Juried Exhibition at Saint Mary's Hearst Gallery

Mount Diablo Summer Sunset, 14 x 14 watercolor

Here is the information on the opening events this weekend:

Hearst Art Gallery, Saint Mary’s College, Moraga
SACRED MOUNTAIN: IMAGES OF MT. DIABLO AND MT. FUJI

May 2 - July 3, 2009
Featuring nearly 100 works of art, including paintings, woodblock prints, photographs, works on paper,textiles, and decorative objects, circa 1650 to 2009.

Opening Events -Sunday, May 3 ,2 – 3 pm Lectures

Preserving and Protecting Diablo: Ron Brown

Fuji and the Japanese People: Naoko Uehara

Soda Activity CenterEvent

Reception following -3:15 – 4:30 pm

Hearst Gallery & patio

It will be interesting to see this exhibit. I think of Japanese Art as being more on paper, such as woodcuts and watercolor ( or actually traditionally ink) paintings vs as using oil paints. When I delivered my painting, I was the only watercolor in the Diablo portion of the exhibit at the time. It will be interesting to see the different interpretations: we all have our own views of Diablo as our population is scattered around the entire base. I am somewhat focused on painting mountains and ridges and am interested in how Mt Fuji has inspired artists on the other side of the world. My painting Mt Diablo Summer Sunset was painted from the West Side of Danville.

Spring Tapestry

15 x 12 watercolor on arches. Loosely based on Las Trampas Ridge in Danville, across from the Pioneer Art Gallery where I was gallery sitting. There was quite a bit of foot traffic into the gallery so it was one of those where I was talking and moving around frequently and painting on auto pilot. Sort of a variation on my canyon and hill series.