Day 19: "30 in 30"

One of the things I love most about the Central Coast of California is driving through miles and miles of vineyards. They seem to be everywhere, and that's a lot of wine!  I have painted vineyards en plein air (outdoors) in France several times, but this is my first painting of a California vineyard.  Our ranch is in an area that supposedly has the perfect micro-climate for grapes (we actually have one row of table grapes in our orchard, but the birds seem to get them before we do). My favorite vineyard is the one at the juncture of Highways 101 and the 154, at the corner of San Marcos Pass, which bypasses Santa Barbara.  I have taken pictures of it many times and started painting it earlier this year.  It was a challenge, and I wasn't happy with it.  So today I scrubbed the entire painting down with mineral spirits and started over.  I hope this painting captures the feeling of seeing the vineyard while driving by in the car, with the sun directly overhead.  I've entitled it, "Drive By Vineyard." 

 "Drive By Vineyard"
12" x 16"
SOLD