Cuyler Harbor by Southern California Artist Marian Fortunati

Cuyler Harbor
© Marian Fortunati
6" x  8" Oil on RayMar Panel

$100 + s/h  

Contact me HERE if you are interested in owning this plein air study.

I'm going to repeat a bit that was in my last post because it was very unusual, I'd like to emphasize this by posting one paragraph again......

David said that he has been coming to San Miguel Island off and on for the last five years and this was the first day that the seas and winds were calm and the weather was warm. We were so lucky!   It was just gorgeous!  

San Miguel is the most northern island in the Channel Islands chain and is almost always a land of fierce wind and cold temperatures.  Not so while we were there.  In fact, it even got almost too warm.  While the mainland sizzled with 110+ temperatures, we got a weather treat.

We had a great lunch, and then I watched David paint a few fish (right) that had been caught. One was a very large Ling Cod which had absolutely beautiful colors on it and was almost prehistoric looking.   David uses really thick paint and loads colors over other colors. This finished pieces are very textural and so different than most.  Jennifer Moses, another artist on the trip, also painted the fish.  Both paintings were beautifully handled and both were very different.  It was a treat to see!

When David had finished I started a small painting. I tried to keep David’s painting style in mind as I painted. The wind had picked up and I was unwilling to go onto the island as it was quite rough and I didn’t want to dump all my gear in the sea. I decided to hone in on a beautiful rock formation in the middle of a kelp bed which looked back toward the sand hills which march up the side of the cliffs. As I was painting, David came by and complimented my work.   Later he came by and said that he had been thinking of my work and had decided that most of my skills were really good but I needed to work on edges more than anything. He said he would do an edge lesson if the wind died down. So we have an edge lesson and a nocturne to look forward to tonight. Wow… what a day!

We ate a delicious dinner then everyone went out to watch a beautiful sunset. We are all so lucky to be in this beautiful spot!