LA BRIDGES (After the gallery opening... back to work)

This is a piece I did completely "plein-air" or on location over a period of 2 days. I't called "La Loma Bridge", 8x10 inches, oil on canvas. It's up in Pasadena, close to the Art Center where I went to college. I painted it with my friend Bill Wray a while back, but I never got a chance to post it here on my blog...

With my vacation, plus getting ready for last week's Timmons Gallery show, I don't have any new paintings finished so I'm posting this one too. I did it for my June show at Tirage, it's called "LOS ANGELES VIADUCT", 16x20 inches, oil on canvas. The location is along the Los Angeles River, looking down from Elysian Park. I've seen some of the old 1920's watercolorists paint this view, like Emil Kosa Jr.

My show at Timmons went well on Saturday. We had an excellent turn out, the place was packed. I saw some old familiar faces that I hadn't seen in a long time too. Glad I could finally do a big San Diego show. Dan McCaw was last month's Timmons show, I really admire his work and there was some beautiful stuff. The gallery space in Rancho Santa Fe is brand new and shows off the artwork nicely, but they just moved from Solana Beach, so not everyone knows about the new location. The new Timmons Gallery will be a real gem to collectors when they get in there, alot of great art by various artists is available. My work will be hanging for a month, along with Aron Wiesenfeld's.

Meanwhile, I've got time to chew my fingernails, hoping sales go well. San Diego has a large number of wealthy people with large new stucco mansions, who desperately need art whether they know it or not. A variety of folks, from old money to the "nouveau reich" (especially from real-estate). Lots of empty wall space, or decorative mirrors and furniture store bought art. Typically, not often the creative or meaningful sense of decorating their homes by surrounding themselves with inspiring objects, yet there's certainly alot of money spent on fashionable decor and home improvement. I wonder if San Diego knows about it's reputation for being a "cultural wasteland"? I don't mean to be too critical or down on San Diegans, because I truly love it here, but it is certainly more of a sports-culture or beach-culture by reputation. For example, what often happens if I meet someone and in conversation tell them that I'm a painter, their first reaction is to say, "Oh! I really need my kitchen painted!" And I'll correct them and say, "Sorry, what I mean is that I'm an artist..." Then they get a generally confused look on their face. In contrast, with Los Angeles or New York, there's a sense of reverence for artists and all the arts. They've experienced the feeling and wonderment of great museums, they appreciate that beauty of the arts, which is the highest expression of the human experience. Discovered a deep feeling within them, having been inspired by creative works. Moved to find meaning in their lives. But then again, if their only exposure to it was some commercial gallery in La Jolla with sub-standard and mass-produced art, or modernist museums that leave them feeling excluded and confused, I can see why it doesn't whet their appetite. Understandably, San Diegans might make the mistake of thinking that all art is "stuck-up" and miss out. Hopefully, as people patronize galleries like Timmons, they can discover for themselves what could be some of the most enriching and meaningful stuff in their lives.