I was honored to be invited to the 2016 Santa Fe Plein Air Festival put on by the Plein Air Painters of New Mexico. The level of work from the 55 invited artists was humbling and inspirational. If you are in Santa Fe between June 9 and July 4, please visit the lovely InArt Gallery for a treat of a show! Everything in the gallery was painted by the 55 invited artists in 4 days... impressive!
'Looking toward Shade' Oil. 8x10. InArt Gallery.
Shadow layout of Chimayo building
Each of the four painting days we had opportunity to join our colleagues at specific locations. The first day was at the pueblo of Chimayo where a pilgrimage was taking place. I got some great photos of the pilgrims coming from a variety of pueblos but choose to paint these two buildings while there. It was a warm day and shade was a true luxury!
The second day was a fun adventure that I experienced with my newly acquired friend Cheryl. We headed past Ghost Ranch and continued on to a dirt road that followed the Chama River to a monastery. We did not make it to the end of the road, but came across amazing cliffs to paint... irresistible in fact!
'Morning Light' Oil. 9x12. InArt Gallery.
The afternoon brought tremendous storm cells that lasted throughout the evening. The skies were amazing!
'Afternoon Build Up' Oil. 11x14. InArt Gallery.
The Third Day we were lucky enough to go Los Luceros historic ranch. It is a working ranch that is owned by the state of New Mexico and is on the Rio Grande River. I have never seen such monumental cottonwood trees... the bosque! I decided to work toward simplicity this day as the amount of green and underbrush was overwhelming to me! a fellow painter, Tom was set up and painting in my view, which gave great perspective to the scale and temperature of the day. I hope to develop this painting at some point. Thanks for modeling Tom!
Study of plein air painter at Los Luceros. Oil. 9x12.
The final painting day I choose to go back to Monestary Road where I revisited cliffs. The sky was a bit hazy and was reflected in my painting, although the grandeur is hard to beat!
Cliff Study. Oil. 11x14.
The following days were spent hanging the shows, socializing and recovering. It is an experience that I will cherish forever. The show is incredible and inspirational... go see it if you have a chance! InArt Gallery 219 Delgado Street, Santa Fe, NM... you will not be disappointed!
Thank you to Plein Air Painters New Mexico and InArt Gallery! You guys are AWESOME!!!!