The First week of October I was in San Luis Obispo painting the nearby landscape for the SLO Art museum's annual Plein Air event. I was happy to be accepted as one of 50 artists from around the country. This was my first time here . The landscape was truley inspiring. I painted Tolosa winery first, then went to Pismo Beach and painted the coast. In between I painted the bay, Montana del Oro, along with the Edna Valley.
Some of my paintings are below. The scenery was diverse, almost as diverse as the weather that went from windy and rainy to sunny and hot. The rain allowed me the opportunity to sleep in a little, then study the refelctions in the rain, while I stayed dry under an overhang. At Montana del Oro, I had just put my pastel painting away , got in the car and drove off when it poured ! Talk about timing. Luck was on my side.
By the end of the week I was exploring the northern coast as well as
some of the local wineries (trying to find where I could paint out of the wind) and looking for a little inspiration. Tasted some great wine at the Edna Valley Winery and painted a nice scene looking across the valley ( from inside my van) as the sun was descending. The light across the hills and on the barn was wonderful.
My quick draw was done in two and a half hours. As I was nearly finished, this boy came and sat on the rocks below the bridge. It was perfect. I rushed to put him in and missed with my first strokes using my round unison pastels. The spectators standing around me were getting anxious as they watched me struggle to get the right strokes. I was under the gun. My edges were off and I had just minutes to turn it in. I corrected the strokes , (my blood pressure must have gone up) and managed to get him down just before I had to turn the painting in for the auction.
After that, I got to eat , relax and enjoy!
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