To purchase an original painting or inquire about the location of an image, please phone the artist at 831-359-3539.
Prints of my paintings are available on canvas, paper, metal, wood, stationary, tote bags & more. Order online through Fine Art America.
Artist’s Statement
My love of the plein air painting process springs from my love for the natural world. Painting outdoors is, for me, a form of meditation. It allows me to shed my egoic self and immerse in the breathing, ever-changing, elemental dynamics — the light, currents, forms, and patterns of land and water and their biota. When I let go of my small personal concerns and slow down, I begin to see — really see — what’s around me. It’s exciting to experience the profound change in perception that spending a day painting outdoors brings. My eyes open to a different world — one with much more nuanced and subtle light, forms, and colors. I hope my images will help others connect more deeply with the natural world as well.
I am inspired by the classical Impressionists, including Monet, Renoir, Bonnard, Van Gough, and by contemporary American Impressionism, distinguished by exciting use of brilliant color, unique composition, and elements of expressionism. But mostly it is nature itself that inspires me to pay homage — my marks on canvas an attempt to express the love and awe I feel for the beauty of our living Earth.
Art Education and Teachers. I earned a B.A. with Honors in Art from the University of California Santa Cruz. Painters I’ve studied with: Eduardo Carrillo, Hardy Hanson, Mary Holmes, Jasper Rose, Peter Loftus, Barbara Bailey-Porter, Maggie Renner Hellmann , Majio of Studio Anavami, Dan Stolpe, and Al Johnsen (I hope you’ll watch this video with Al and Manny Santana!)
Formative Years. I have been drawing and painting since my earliest memories. I grew up in a historic Spanish-style San Marino, California home full of fine art books, original drawings and paintings by master artists and by my older sister, an art student at USC and protégé of Edgar Ewing. Our home was walking distance to the Huntington Library, which I visited often. Nearby were the home and plein air painting environs of impressionist Franz Bischof , and the Craftsman “cottages” of architects Greene and Greene, including the Gamble House, designed with Tiffany glass and Batchelder tiles. My artistic predilections were shaped by that early exposure to the turn of the century Arts and Crafts Movement as well as to the rich contemporary art scene of mid 20th Century California.
Current Work. I taught art, as well as other subjects, in public schools for many years. Once I retired from teaching, I spent the next decade working on my novel. When the book found a publisher and went out into the world in 2019, I longed to leave the cerebral noise of words and dive into my kinesthetic/visual modality. I joined a pottery studio and a plein air painting group in 2021, and it’s been a deep relief and joy to return to making art and pottery in the company of other artisans — to get my hands in clay, in the earth, and to go outside and paint to honor nature’s beauty.
Proud Member of Local Artists’ Organizations:
Santa Cruz Oil Painters
Central Coast Plein Air Painters
Monterey Bay Plein Air Painters’ Association
California Art League
California Art Club
Resources for Painters:
The members of the Santa Cruz Oil Painters with whom I paint have been generous in sharing their wealth of knowledge and experience. Especially useful for anyone setting out to understand the tools and equipment needed to paint en plein air is Suzanne Elliot’s website: http://www.pleinairmuse.com/plein-air-painting-equipment.html
It’s unusual to find someone who can switch so seamlessly from painting to writing, but Mary, you seem to be able to do just that.. It is as much a pleasure to view your
painting as to read your book. Keep on a-doin’ both!.
Lois