California Plein-Air Colorist

From Sea to Shining Sea: A Reflection of America (May 8, 2004)

The first look at the plein air paintings from the Sea to Shining Sea Exhibition at the Haggin Museum leaves one speechless. Only with closer inspection does one begin to take note of the process of each painter and how this collection is a melting pot of distinguished flavors: some loose and painterly, others tight and realistic; some modern, some classical. Some were complex with color, yet others quite tonalistic. But all characteristic in their own way, with a unique vision- depicting scenes of individual relevance with their own regional style of painting. Here we have a seamless blend of the talent and mastery from across the nation that has undoubtedly made this exhibition a success. Behind each painting should be a label: �Warning, not suitable for pre-fab homes, office cubicles or rooms at Motel 6. Hangs equally well on a neutral white wall or one painted with Ralph Lauren Suede Finish.�

I had arrived Stockton earlier that day with my mentor, Camille Przewodek. She had been graciously introducing me to those I hadn�t had the opportunity of meeting until now. These introductions continued throughout the afternoon and into the evening. And in the occasional lapses away from my trusted side-kick, I had intrepidly introduced myself to such well-knowns as Albert Handell and Clyde Aspevig, using my safe, quiet demeanor, while anonymously calling myself, �just Carole� (only later to reveal myself as a devoted plein air student). I would receive some brilliant reply such as, �aren�t we all�, and finally I would add , �Oh yes, can I take your picture for PleinAir Magazine?�

The day started before the sun. Camille and I reached downtown Stockton at around 8:30am, just in time to mingle with a few painters prior to their setting up easels for a three hour paint-out. As we took a few minutes to sip on our much needed espressos, I noticed how Stockton is beginning to stick out like a colorful thumb. The architecture surrounding the newly revitalized downtown was structurally varied and full of color.

It certainly must have inspired John Budicin when he chose to paint the beautiful Hotel Stockton and a row of buildings fronted by spirally palm trees from the waterway; and Kenn Backhaus, Marika Wolfe and Phil Sandusky, as they painted the majestic fountain and the commanding architecture that surrounded them. Charles Waldman even painted standing in the center divide along Weber Avenue! On the other end of the spectrum, Jean LeGassick, John Cosby, Joe Paquet, Nancy Bush and Michael Godfrey chose to paint the heap of rusting corrugated steel buildings lining the waterway.

Among the other painters we saw painting along the levee were Billyo O'Donnell, Eric Michaels, Gil Dellinger, Glenna Hartmann, Peter Adams, and Ron Rencher. Clark Mitchell stayed close by in the square. Jason Bouldin painted the palms from a shady locale on a side street. And Bill Hook painted near Weber Point not far from Lucinda Kasser. At noon, the artists gathered in the square to display their works and offer them for sale to the public. That�s when I noticed Mary Whyte�s charming little watercolor that she produced in front of the bus station. �Where�s the bus station?� I asked myself. Okay, so some painters go a bit of the beaten path during these paint-outs, so I�m sure I missed a couple of them.

Many of the paintings created in this nine-to-noon time slot, with their deceptive simplicity, expressed the painter�s keen eye for the interesting shapes of the Stockton scape- many comprising the fewest brush strokes- that provide depth, texture and color. Among the several that didn�t paint, some showed up for the sake of comraderie. I noticed that among them were Matt Smith, Skip Whitcomb, Clyde Aspevig and Carol Guzman, who came to see what works were created among their peers. Ray Roberts made an appearance prior to the paint-out and he and wife, Peggi Kroll-Roberts, met up with everyone later at the opening.

That night at the Haggin, the painters at the opening displayed their own outward uniqueness much like the paintings themselves. From rugged to refined, casual to dressy, subtle to bold, they blurred the lines of categorization. While waiting for Peter Adams to finish signing my copy of From Sea to Shining Sea: A Reflection of America, I mused that about the same time people stopped trying to make me dress better, listen to good music and drink something other than domestic beer, I found that I actually liked Vivaldi, fine wine, and wearing satin. This was an occasion that myself, the painters, guests and collectors could cozy up to, for at the Haggin Museum this fine spring evening, the only thing missing was Vivaldi himself.

Among those that I didn�t mention but participated in this exhibition are: Christopher Blossom, Scott Burdick, Marcia Burtt, William Davis, Donald Demers, M. Stephen Doherty, Gregory Hull, Wilson Hurley, William Scott Jennings, T. Allen Lawson, Denise Lisiecki, Kevin Macpherson, Joseph McGurl, Ned Mueller, Ralph Oberg, Peggy Root, George Strickland, Karen Vernon, and Curt Walters.

This photo by: Eric Rhoads of PleinAir Magazine

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The 19th Annual PAPA Exhibition & Sale at Caesars Tahoe

This is the full un-cut version of my article for September's Issue of Plein Air Magazine. You can read the published version here.

The dramatic views of the Sierra Nevadas reprised at Caesars Tahoe in an exhibition & sale of over 200 exquisite plein air paintings set in early twentieth century style frames. While the string quartet lent a decidedly classical air, the paintings were the orchestra, strategically encircling the red carpeted ballroom. Each artist�s display of varying discipline and style seamlessly segued into one another. And as classical music evokes certain moods, these paintings captured some of the High Sierra�s most spectacular moods: exquisite predawn moments along the rocky coastline of Lake Tahoe and lavender mists of purple blossoms scattered in the valleys. Some paintings emulated the dizzying eddies of blue and wavelets of teal from the many waterfalls pooling into the pristine lakes, much like translucent fluorite stones reflecting every fluid indigo vein, every tint of blue and yellow and strata of deep rich color. This was an exhibit of drama and depth.

At Lake Tahoe Nevada, on June 18, 2004, the air was warm and yet the mountains looming beyond the cityscape still had patches of snow catching every flirty wink of light. Singer and avid watercolorist, Tony Bennett, arrived at the hotel shortly before the air began to cool and the setting sun shimmered to a velvety red. As Mr. Bennett was escorted past the plein air painter�s hospitality suite, his escort began to explain about the visiting artists, but Bennett stopped her because he knew exactly who they were.

It was a performance by Mr. Bennett that kicked off the 19th Annual Plein Air Painters of America Exhibition & Sale, hosted by Caesers Tahoe. "In the room tonight are the top painters in America,� Bennett said while pausing in the middle of his concert, �Unlike those who paint from photographs, these painters are the most honest painters in America ...because they paint outdoors on location, thus capturing the subtle colors and light that you cannot see in a photograph. I painted with them and have made many new friends." Among those he painted with, was Kevin Macpherson of Taos New Mexico. Bennett and Macpherson exchanged portraits they painted of one another.

Mr. Bennett also visited many of the artists� suites to view their paintings. �It was a matter of being in the right place at the right time,� explained John Cosby, a guest artist with the Plein Air Painters of America, who sold a painting titled �Tony the Painter�, to Bennett.

Unlike Catalina Island, where the PAPA Exhibition & Sale had taken place over the previous 18 years, the Lake Tahoe region, where the plein air painters converged to paint for two weeks prior to the show, is an expansive 22 miles long and 12 miles wide of dramatic snow-capped mountain views, waterfalls and of course, the beautiful and pristine lake. Denise Burns, founder of the Plein Air Painters of America, with Roy Rose, art collector and grand nephew of California Impressionist, Guy Rose, brought together twenty artists to participate in the first Annual Plein Air Painters Festival on Catalina Island in 1986. With a similar vision and passion, Mark Rittorno, president of Caesars Tahoe and an avid plein air painter, had a mission: to bring the Plein Air Painters of America to the Sierra Nevada. �One day I'd love to see our community become a center of fine art and a destination for art lovers,� said Mark Rittorno, �This is the first step in that direction. Maybe this will also help our local residents and others understand that Caesars Tahoe is something more than a casino and has the greater good of the community at heart.�

Joining the PAPA Signature members this year were guest artists: John Cosby, Glenna Hartmann, Peggi Kroll-Roberts, Chris Blossom, Lorenzo Chavez, Gerald Fritzler, and Don Demers. New signature members are Ray Roberts and Skip Whitcomb. The morning of June 19, 2004, a paint-out with all 35 painters, took place at Zephyr Cove. It was here that the public was able to witness them painting the fathomless cobalt blue and shimmering turquoise green waters, the dramatic mountain rising beyond the lake, sun drenched models on the beach and near by cabins in the woods. It was the second scheduled event after Tony Bennett�s Live Concert. The elegant Gala Dinner & Sale was the third event.

Later that day, from 6 to10 pm, collectors and guests enjoyed an elegant sit-down dinner and complimentary wine with the artists in the ballroom of Caesars Tahoe. At 9 pm the doors opened to the public. Paintings were sold off the easels with ease.

The final event was the Champagne Sale from 10:30 am to 1 pm the following morning, where a new show opened in the ballroom. Some easels were nearly bare, while others displayed a few new pieces to cover the empty spaces. The champagne flowed freely, gourmet coffee and pastries were served and there were smiles and laughter all around. This event emphatically proved the point: music and art co-exist beautifully.

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The Contours of Content, by Peggi Ridgway

Printed in Southwest Art Magazine, March 1984

(Carole's notes: I had never heard of Ray Vinella until the Plein Air Painters of America's panel discussion at the PAPA Colorado workshop. Then when I learned that he had played an important role in teaching some of the PAPA painters that were at this event, I had to do my research to find out more. Below is a copy of an article I had found that was printed in '84. He is still painting and teaching today.)

Inside the little caf� on Taos� main street the aroma of fresh brewed coffee commingles with the sweetness of freshly made bread, piping hot, permeating the air, steaming the windows. As usual, Ray Vinella is having breakfast here with his friends- an Indian from the nearby pueblo, a local rancher, a Game and Fish Bureau officer and a former painting student. Three women visiting from Los Angeles stop by the table to say hello. The little wood-paneled coffee shop is charged with the congeniality of friends and business acquaintances beginning the day together.

"Taos is still the trading center it was many, many years ago," Vinella asserts." A lot of important business is conducted right here, in this room."

Ray Vinella is a likeable man of 67 years. Born in Bari, Italy, he was raised in New York City�s "Little Italy". ( "They wrote books and movies about my neighborhood," Vinella says. "The real godfather took place where I grew up.") His reflections of childhood days on New York�s lower east side are colorful: handpainting ties in Greenwich Village; finding his way about Manhattan, afoot or by bus, with a baby brother tagging along; having fist fights every day of his life until he was eighteen years old.

One listens, enraptured, to tales from Vinella�s life and his travels to Europe, Los Angeles and Taos. How can one person have so much to say about so many things and places? Gesturing exuberantly, he seems to draw pictures in the air. His dark eyes sparkle. His enthusiasm is contagious.

Vinella is genuinely interested in life. An insatiable curiosity leads him to notice both the overall mood and the most minute details of his milieu: autumn�s afternoon sunlight resting on yellow leaves, or winter�s ghostlike trees silhouetted against a deep purple sky.

They all become paintings.

In his modest adobe home, Vinella points to masks and statues carved by African artisans. Those objets d�art stand amidst paintings by contemporary Taos artists, an aquatint by Doel Reed and engravings by his artist wife Leslie Crespin�s great-great grandfather. A brightly colored Pennsylvania Amish weaving covers the dinning room table.

If you ask him his opinions about art and artists today, Vinella may surprise you with a veritable cascade of commentary. He is disturbed about the misapplication or elimination of the fundamentals of painting in much contemporary artwork. He laments the reluctance of aspiring artists to share their knowledge and expertise with each other and detest their tendency to do paintings by formula. High prices demanded by artists with little expertise and galleries which promote work which is not of professional quality are anathema to him.

To see art, Vinella will take you on a leisurely tour in his Ford Expedition. Rocking up a high country road around Taos, he points out myriad abstract shapes and designs what was, only moments before, evergreens and mountain peaks. All the while he stresses the significance of abstraction in realistic painting. Afterwards, Vinella takes you to his studio, where he welcomes the opportunity to explain why he works in a variety of media, including egg tempera, watercolor, oil and model wax. His subject matter, he points out, spans from nudes to mountain streams, still lifes and portraits.

Vinella lives and breathes art and has done so since childhood. "I used to play hooky at the Metropolitan Museum of Art," he recalls. A hint of nostalgia sifts into the conversation as he relates the story of being chastised by a history teacher who believed he was skipping school to attend Sinatra performances at the Paramount.

"I told him all about the museum," Vinella recounts. "When you walk in, go to the right, you�ll see this, and on the left, such and such. He couldn�t believe it! He recognized that I really was interested in art and had me do a drawing of him. From then on I got passing grades."

By the time Vinella was fifteen years old, he had his heart set on becoming a successful illustrator. He was fascinated by newspaper illustrations and could easily picture himself creating black-and-white drawings of raincoats and shampoo bottles. He studied art for four years in high school, learning the mechanics of rendering: "we painted exactly what we saw-the textures of glass, skin, fur. It was an invaluable experience. But it also hurt me. I had to change some habits when I started doing fine art. I had to find my outlet, my way of saying, 'this is a painting and I don�t have to render every little thing.'"

Finding his creative outlet came slowly for Vinella. A four-year European tour of duty with the US Air Force, two degrees from the Art Center College of Design in Los Angeles, (1959), and an eleven-year career in advertising art in New York City, Pittsburgh and Los Angeles, preceded his desion to become a fine artist. In Los Angeles, his illustrative skills were honed at Walt Disney Productions, in his own free lance business, and in fine art done during his leisure hours.

Like so many others, Vinella was eventually faced with the decision to maintain his lucrative career or strike out on his own as a fine artist. With a wife and three small sons to consider, the move would have to be made responsibly.

The confidence of his close friend and former Art Center roommate, artist James Pilatos, of Carmel, California, was encouragement for Vinella to try his wings. The work of Nicolai Fechin (Russian, 1881-1955) also had a profound impact on him. " I saw Fechin�s work for the first time while I was going to school. You can imagine what went through my mind. I almost quit painting. It was ridiculous," Vinella chuckles. " His technique the way he used color, composed shapes. It was new to me. And his subjects intrigued me: mountains, goats, burros, Indians. Where was this place? I was in LA and didn�t even know such a place existed.

"Finally I got enough courage to go to Taos. I put some paintings in a gallery on the plaza and didn�t hear a thing until I went back a year later and found that all my paintings had sold."

Ray Vinella fondly remembers the inevitable lean years. "I rented a house in Taos for $75 a month in December 1969. There was a bunch of us [artists] who arrived in Taos about the same time. We�d meet on the street and introduce ourselves: Julian Robles, Walt Gonske, Rod Goebel, Ron Barsano, Robert Daughters. We met for coffee in the mornings and talked and argued art. We learned from each other."

The camaraderie the artists felt eventually led to the formation of a group called "The Taos Six" (SWA Oct 74). Their works, depicting southwestern themes, particularly of the Taos, Santa Fe and northern New Mexico area, were shown in galleries and museums across the country.

"Like the French Impressionists," says Vinella, "we just came to Taos and did what we wanted to do, very quietly. We each painted differently, and in time we found out how well we were accepted around the country. Our art was pure and professional."

Within a few years the group disbanded and each artist built his own successful fine art career. Life took on some exciting new dimensions for Vinella. Always an eager and willing student, he soon found himself with students of his own. For Vinella, teaching became an opportunity which he grabbed with gusto.

Eventually the joy of teaching led Vinella to establish a series of painting workshops, which he conducts several times a year in the Taos Area. Also at the T.I.A, Fredricksburg Texas, And Colorado springs. It is not uncommon to find his yard full of painters at their easels, carefully applying pigments to canvas in the quiet grandeur of the surrounding Sangre de Cristo Mountains.

Further expansion if his artistic vision came in 1982 with a commission from the American Express Company to sculpt four bronzes depicting the American Indian, and in the same year, the invitation to sculpt four bronzes of endangered species for the World Wildlife Federation. In 1983, he accepted an invitation to join the newly formed Society of American Impressionists (SWA Aug 83). S.A.I

Of his work and evolution it has undergone throughout the years, Vinella traces his steps back to when he first began experimenting in fine art.

"I had a hard time with oil paint because I�d been using fast-drying designer�s colors. I used to paint real loose, but real loose don�t mean anything. There must be a reason, a philosophy behind it. It�s a shorthand and so it�s much more exciting than photographic art."

Vinella continues, "I like to jump around. I use different media for different problems and to express what I want to say. For example, I use egg tempera, an exacting medium, for quiet scenes. Loose watercolor works better for landscapes. There�s got to be a good reason to do a painting-a certain type of light, fascinating shapes, cool crisp air. You select your medium to convey that reason, to communicate what you see and what you feel about the subject."

"I could paint a blue sky and white clouds and everybody would agree that it�s a blue sky with white clouds. But the serious painter, who has been studying and looking at nature a long time, incorporates the different hues and reflections of light bouncing from the earth up into the sky. He say�s �what�s the edge doing? What�s really happening, and how can I interpret it?�"

"You have to find the right color, the right value, and put it in the right place, with the right brushstroke and direction. Hopefully you will describe a small area, which is a part of a whole."

Vinellan has strong opinions about the definitions of good and bad art. "The public has been looking at bad art for so long that they think it�s good art," he maintains, explaining that the general art-buying public is satisfied with mediocrity. "An artist has to be willing to go all the way with a painting and not be lazy. Drawing (I don�t mean mechanical drawing) is the language of painting. Only when you understand drawing can you distort, take shortcuts, and be creative. A good artist can make anything into a painting."

Visit Ray Vinella's website to continue reading this artice: www.rayvinella.com/RayVinellaArticle01.html

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Painting in America�s Giverny with the Plein Air Painters of America

Printed in January's Issue of Plein Air Magazine.

During the 18th Annual Plein-Air Painters of America Workshop & Exhibition in the turn-of-the-century impressionist art colony of Old Lyme CT, 100 eager students embraced the seaside wind chill and intermittent rain and sunshine to paint among a few of the most recognized plein air painters in the nation. The instructors were Kenn Backhaus, Gay Faulkenberry, Louise Demore, Joseph Mendez, Ralph Oberg, Joseph Paquet, Ron Rencher, Brian Stewart, George Strickland, Linda Tippetts and Skip Whitcomb.

We're in a land of patterns and contrasts, with trees of saffron, terra cotta and gold dust. With deep tones of copper and canary yellow against lapis lazuli skies, the cool October light and warm shadows reinterpreted the blues of the Connecticut River. This was the second consecutive year that PAPA visited Old Lyme. This year our group decided to come a month later to experience the fall foliage. We were deep in America's own Givery at the most beautiful time of year, participating in a workshop with the highest caliber of plein air painting instruction.

Each instructor- with 10-15 students- had a designated painting spot for the week. The designations sent students to local homeowners' properties, to farms, marinas and nearby towns of Noank, Essex, East Haddam, Mystic, Guilford and Clinton.

The workshop's opening day brought a westerly breeze that dropped the early-morning temperature to somewhere around forty degrees. A handful of other students and I set up our easels behind the Goodspeed Opera House in East Haddam.

Our instructor for the day, Ray Roberts- a plein air painter with an obsessive passion for finding the beautiful shapes in nature, assembled simple shapes like mosaics while demonstrating and lecturing about the fundamental truths of composing and executing a great painting. "When approaching the scene, it's all about patterns, light and dark patterns." Roberts explained. "There are infinite patterns in any given scene."

The following day, a whole new group of students worked at Lobster Landing in Clinton. George Strickland, our instructor and the current president of PAPA, explained to us that he focuses on what compels him to paint a particular scene. "I feel it's important for all of us to find that out." Strickland also stresses the importance of finding our own voices.

One day, the entire group visited historic Mystic Seaport. The instructors painted for three hours; then the students participated in a mass paint-out as the instructors offered critiques and advice. It was a perfect sunny afternoon of painting among the old sailing vessels and the nostalgic setting of the seaport museum.

Ralph Oberg spent a day at Griswold Point on the distinguished Connecticut Griswold family compound. The rains had come, but the wet weather was intermittent, so we toughed it out. Oberg quoted the late Russian impressionist, Sergei Bongard, "Paint the trees before the leaves and the dog before the fleas" and stressed that a good composition must be simple and strong.

Our rain soaked day was rewarded by a private preview showing of Plein Air Color & Light, an exhibition and sale of paintings by signature members of PAPA and dinner at the Hideaway Restaurant & Pub, the designated nightly hot spot among many of us for good conversation and drink with a few new friends.

On a cool crisp morning on Tiffany Farm, Kenn Backhaus demonstrated painting a cluster of barns receding into the fog. Backhaus explained, "When physics and poetry are combined in a painting, it makes a great work of art." By physics, he meant drawing, perspective, and value sense. Poetry he defined as the ethereal quality that occurs from being �in the zone� while painting. It quickly became another challenging day as the rain began to pour after lunch, but we stayed to work on our afternoon studies.

A raffle & mixer followed the workshop at the Florence Griswold Museum. Our paintings were set up for viewing by the rest of the group, and we enjoyed wine, hors d'oeuvres and banter. As George Strickland called random names drawn from a hat, students roared with cheers as lucky winners received an assortment of gifts.

Saturday night, we were reunited again for the grand opening of Plein Air Color & Light. It was a fine evening at the Lyme Art Association. as wine flowed and paintings sold. Smiles and laughter prevailed in "America's Giverny".

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2nd Annual Less is More Miniature Show

Laguna Plein Air Painters Association
Nov 17 - Dec 28, 2007
Opening Reception Nov 17, 2007
Laguna Plein Air Painters Association
Laguna Beach, CA

Sausalito Womans Club Mille Fiori Art Show

6 Woman Show
April, 2008
Opening Reception April 26, 2008
The Sausalitos Womans Club
Sausalito, CA

3 Person Show - Intimate Views

Carole Gray-Weihman, Alfredo Tofanelli and Nobee Kanayama
April - June, 2008
Opening Reception April 19, 2008
The American Visions Gallery
Folsom, CA

Paint San Clemente Exhibition

Plein Air Exhibition of works from Paint San Clemente Paint Out 2008
June - August, 2008
Opening Reception June 21, 2008
The San Clemente Art Gallery
San Clemente, CA

Alameda Plein Air

Alameda Plein Air Paint Out & Exhibition
July 14-19, 2008 Paint Out
Exhibition July 19- August 30, 2008
Frank Bette Center for the Arts
Alameda, CA

Wyoming Plein Air

Wyoming Plein Air Paint Out & Exhibition
Aug 1-9, 2008 Paint Out
Exhibition Aug 9- Sept, 2008
Opening Reception Aug 9, 2009
The Link Gallery
Cheyenne, Wyoming

Jackson Hole Art Festival

Jackson Hole Art Festival
Exhibition & Sale July 26-27, 2008
Teton Village
Jackson Hole, Wyoming

Cultural Arts Council of Estes Park Fine Art Gallery Show

7th Annual Estes Park Plein Air Exhibition
August 23 - October, 2008
Opening Reception August 23, 2008
Cultural Arts Council of Estes Park Fine Art Gallery
Estes Park, Colorado

2 Person Show - California Impressionists

Carole Gray-Weihman and Alfredo Tofanelli
October - November, 2008
Opening Reception Oct 11, 2008
The Link Gallery
Cheyenne, Wyoming

4 Person Show at Pelican Art Gallery

Carole Gray-Weihman, Camille Przewodek, Alfredo Tofanelli and Dale Axelrod
March 31 - June 14, 2009
Opening Reception April 4, 2009
The Pelican Gallery
Petaluma, CA

2009 Nomadas Del Arte

Showing Paintings created in Nomadas Del Arte 2008 Paint Out
April, 2009
Opening Reception April 9, 2009
The Southwest Gallery
Dallas, TX

Featuring some of the nation's most talented plein air painters. Artist's work are salon style paintings produced in Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, Texas and Utah during Jan 1 to Dec 31, 2008.