Artwork

Stick a Fork in It

Plein air artwork from Spooner's cove in Montana De Oro State Park on the San Luis Obispo coast of Central California
I’ve been on the road for 2 weeks now. I’ve slept in my van in grocery store parking lots, picking ticks off my face that must have crawled out of my painting gear as I slept. I’ve wrestled the sun and cursed at the wind. My back is tired, my feet ache, my lips are […]…

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A Matter of Convenience

Plein air painting of San Simeon Pier on the Central coast of California in San Luis Obispo county
Chumash land: just the way it always was… Spanish imperialism: all of your earths is ours now Mission San Miguel: we graze our cattle on all your lands now Mexican land grant: all of your ground is Mr. Pico’s now George Hearst: I found gold, I buy your dirt from Pico. Willam Randalph Hearst: Thanks […]…

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From the Overflow of the Heart, the Mouth Speaks

8th day on the road, 23rd painting completed, 2nd one on this day. Last one of the trip. I’m exhausted. There’s something about a rivermouth sandbar that really holds one’s attention. I wanted to get the whole scene here: the inland valley leading to the now hot and dry heartland this river flows from, the […]…

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Machine Work

Plein air artwork of the Borradori Garage in Cayucos on the San Luis Obispo coast of central California
A bit of old California here. Not too many places are left like this along the coast. An old industrial building (built long before the man/nature dichotomy narrative had reached its current crescendo and even man’s industry was a thing to be celebrated as a wonder of nature itself) placed right above a small fishing […]…

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Russian Interference

8th day on the road, 22nd painting completed, 1st on this day The Russians are planning to claim this coast for themselves. It’s true. From San Francisco to Trinidad Harbor, they’ve left secret signs, “possession plaques” buried at various strategic locations. This painting is located near the first of these plates, and within a year […]…

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Soaring with Rick Griffin

7th day on the road, 21st painting completed, 3rd one this day Painting the California coast is something that rose out of my admiration for the California Impressionists of the early 1900’s. Before that I was painting skulls and bones and waves, which rose out of my admiration for Rick Griffin (1944-1991) and his artwork. […]…

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Avoiding the Evil Leaf

Some days are easy, other days you have to dig deep. Those are the days you find out what you are made of. I’m just a painter, but compared to working in the studio, plein air painting can seem like a battle with the universe itself. Confession. I am naturally lazy. A water person. I […]…

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A Reluctant Admission

7th day on the road, 19th painting completed, 1st one this day After collecting an official “Vehicle Immobilization and Potential Arrest Notice” on this private development the day before, I was careful on this day to stay in the designated public access area. These pay-to-play private coast mentalities have always struck me as odd. I’ve […]…

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Tea and Oranges

6th day on the road, 18th painting completed, 3rd on this day I had this place pinpointed on my map for months. Not for it’s beauty, though it doesn’t lack in that area, but because it’s a place that means a lot to a friend that commissioned me to paint it on my next trip […]…

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Get Off My Lawn

6th day on the road, 17th painting completed, 2nd one this day A big inspiration in my art life came from an unlikely source. It makes perfect sense in hindsight, but at the time when my older brother got a copy of Bank Wright’s classic book “Surfing California” when I was maybe 11 years old, […]…

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Open Lanes

6th day on the road, 16th painting completed, 1st on this day I was hoping to paint the view north from this location, but when I got here I wasn’t feeling it. The linear elements of this reef meeting the microscopic 8inch lines of windswell wrapping around it got my interest though, especially with the […]


Fault Lines

5th day on the road, 15th painting completed, 2nd one this day I’ve scouted around this cove a few times over the years, looking for an angle to paint this place, but never bothered to find a way out onto the cliffs that overlook it. Glad I finally did, I could spend weeks painting out […]…

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Ticks Are Evil

7th day on the road, 20th painting completed, 2nd one this day This is another place I’ve wanted to paint for a long time, but it’s quite a walk from the road and just hadn’t had the time on previous trips. I knew the angle I was looking for, but it would require a fair […]…

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In a Different Light

5th day on the road, 14th painting completed, 1st one this day Occasionally when I mention to folks that I travel up and down painting the California coast, they will suggest that I do paintings of all the lighthouses. I usually think that’s because someone once gave them a calendar with a different lighthouse on […]…

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We All Stand Alone

4th day on the road, 12th painting completed, 3rd one this day I came around a bend on the winding highway 1 a bit south of here today and a large RV was heading toward me in the oncoming lane. It wasn’t swerving or dangerous, we were both moving slowly and within our respective lanes. […]…

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A Change is Brewing

Often the main challenge in painting a location is finding an angle that condenses the story of being there into one frame. I’d surfed here years before with a friend, rappellingdown the steep cliff on a wet, gray day. I’ve been fond of the place ever since. That personal connection can make a painting even […]…

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Heard from Across the Valley

4th day on the road, tenth painting completed, first one this day Some paintings I’ve seen for a long time before I painted them. When painting plein air it can take awhile since you’re not pulling images out of your imagination, if there’s a painting rumbling around in there, you have to wait until you […]…

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Remnants of a Long Day

4th day on the road, 13th painting completed, (4th on this day) After a long day bouncing all over the area painting as efficiently and nonstop as I possibly could, I ended my 3rd piece with enough time to sneak in one more. One thing that really jumps out about this coastline is how old […]…

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Glass at Dusk

3rd day on the road, 9th painting completed, 3rd one this day Not so long ago, and prior to the age of plastic’s dominance, one coastal town decided it’s beautiful bluffs overlooking the sea would be a great place for the town dump. It made all sorts of sense, what with the flat ground being […]…

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Untouched

3rd day on the road, 8th painting completed, 2nd one this day. Making what I could of a rather dark gray day… Well “Untouched” may be a misnomer for a title, this place has seen a lot of feet treading it’s paths being as close as it is to town. That said, it’s been spared […]…

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The Wind Blows Where it Wishes

3rd day on the road, 7th painting completed, 1st one this day The wind was blowing lightly onshore this morning but the fog was moving slowly out to sea on a seemingly different program altogether. You never know what, or who, will blow in with the wind. Besides fog, here’s what else the wind blew […]…

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Fading West

2nd day on the road, 6th painting completed, 4th one of the day I wasn’t planning to paint here at all, though I did stop and check it out the day before. This day I was planning to head south from my previous location, but the afternoon fog crept in and made a mockery of […]…

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No Vegetarian Options

2nd day on the road, 5th painting completed, 3rd one of the day There’s a chunk of reef out here that I’ve always enjoyed pulling over for and watching when passing through this area. I’ve never seen it look truly rideable, but I wouldn’t put it past some nut to give it a go on […]…

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