This was my third year attending this invitational, The Morgan Hill Plein Air Paint Out, and it’s fourth year in total. It’s a small event with no more than 15 artists, and it’s wonderfully organized by Colibri Gallery in a little town that has a fiery passion for art.
The prior years I've attended have been during the fall months, so this being in the spring was a welcome change. There’s nothing better than seeing the long lush green grasses swaying in the breeze, decorated in wildflowers.
If you’re new, you might be surprised to hear that I — well, I have problems, lol, more specifically; anxiety and panic attacks. They have GREATLY improved over the years and I’ve done a lot of work in rewiring my brain, but still have a steady fear of freeway driving which makes these plein-air events complicated. It’s something that comes and goes in my life, but the latest wave has been never-ending. It’s a huge embarrassment, a major self esteem killer, and I constantly feel like a burden to family and friends. *awkward pause*
But annnyway….this time, Jon stepped in and took one for the team. He was SO supportive in a million different ways, and I couldn’t be more appreciative to have a husband so patient, caring and encouraging. Bonus points for him for having charming golden retriever energy to balance my unintentionally off-putting black cat vibes.
This year I went into the event pretty unprepared. I had all materials packed, the pet sitter set up, hotel booked, house cleaned, but mentally felt rusty at painting, and had no game plan of where to go. The boundary is 20 miles within Morgan Hill which is quite generous. One can find misty waterfalls, countryside horse farms, calm lakes, and epic overlooks within that span. So here’s what we found!
DAY 1 - Thursday, May 01
We were on the road by 7:30am in order to check in and get a much needed coffee at the gallery. The clouds were thick and Jon was questioning my judgement for telling him to wear shorts, but since it’s closer to the coast it’s typical for the clouds to burn off later in the day.
And how it did! By 11am the clouds were completely gone and we were roasting under the sun. Jon went off on a trail run, and I found this spot overlooking a field of wildflowers to a barn with horses. I’m a huge sucker for horses, and had a quarter horse growing up, so there’s a lot of love behind this one.
Me showing my horse at the county fair back in the day
Finished oil painting 12”x24”
My goal was to do 2-3 paintings a day, so after a quick lunch at Mohi Farm we ventured up the hills and found this beautiful overlook.
Jon napped in the car, and I just enjoyed the view and the company of all the cute ground squirrels. It was a great way to end the day, so we drove back to the hotel to wind down and prepare for a long painting day.
Day 2 - Friday, May 02
Our first destination was Uvas Canyon County Park since I had heard there were waterfalls to be found. You had to pay for parking ahead and reserve a designated time slot. That whole process was way overly complicated since we were literally the only ones in the parking lot.
A ranger met us and offered us a few tips. He left with a very ominous warning about it being a particularly intense mosquito season. As a person that has terrible reactions to all bug bites, I was terrified but we had gone too far to turn back.
The park was stunning, but I was ill prepared with my treadless boots and 30lb pack. The trail was all uphill, and my determined ass was sure that there would be something better around every turn. After almost a mile up, I was wiped out and settled on a little waterfall with a trail leading to it. Jon continued his hike and went to see if it was worth going further.
Nothing better than painting near a waterfall. Talk about serene!
After I had finished, I decided to continue up to see one of the bigger falls while Jon reluctantly went back down to get our lunch. By the time he returned, I had decided to just go back down and find another spot closer to the car. Poor guy.
The slick boots and heavy pack were a recipe for disaster and I had to walk sideways down the whole way to avoid falling on my butt. My feet were ACHING, and my back was angry from the heavy pack. By the end of the trail I had no more energy to paint, and we ended up being chased out of the picnic area by literal clouds of mosquitos.
I longed for the white fluffy bed at the LaQuinta Inn (which I highly recommend), so we made a detour so I could change shoes and get off my feet. Exhaustion was intense at this point, but you can’t just have ONE painting.
After a couple of dud spots, we ended up back downtown near the Colibri Gallery and I painted the Sinaloa Cafe which was nearby.
Aside from the car parking right in front of the scene halfway through, and the intense winds, it was a decent success. I had fun painting all the plants and talking to passerby’s.
Jon’s Mom came up to visit that evening so we all had dinner together despite the two of them having a pretty serious allergy to something in the air. It was nice to sit down and eat warm food after a long day of standing.
On the way home we decided to try for one last painting. We spotted this beautiful scene off a country road and without any hesitation we pulled over and I jumped out to catch the sunset. The wind was so strong and cold but it was worth it.
This piece wasn't in the show since we were limited to six paintings and it was less refined than the others, but it still has a special place in my heart.
Day 3 - Saturday, March 03
I had a terrible nights sleep, the second in a row. Not ideal for competitions, but not unusual either to lack quality sleep. Saying this, because it marks the start to a rocky morning.
It was cloudy. We got up early and drove. And drove. And drove. Turns out it’s really hard to pick a spot while you’re in a moving car on a semi busy road. Saturday is also the day when everyone decides to get on their road bikes and ride around in packs which made the hunt for a painting location even more stressful. It was nearly an hour and a half of driving before I settled on a scene.
My head was pounding from the stress of picking a spot. I took my trusty combo of Goody’s Headache powder with coffee and ibuprofen (not advising that btw), and settled on this gloomy little scene. I loved it actually. Painting there was so serene, I loved the big dark shapes and speckles of wildflowers. It is one of my favorites for sure.
Jon decided to do a trail run around the lake. Since we had no cell service he showed me the trail he was taking in case I needed to go look for his body lol.
I ended up finishing the painting in an hour and then got increasingly worried about Jon’s well being. Luckily right as I was about to go on the hunt, he appeared looking very fit and energized. Apparently we’d both gotten rid of a lot of that stress from the morning.
After a delicious lunch, compliments of the gallery, we headed to the Kirigin Cellars where an event for the public was scheduled. It was optional but I always like to participate in the advertised events. It’s a great chance to chat with other artists and meet new and interesting people.
Kristian Matthews, Cleo Vilett and Jon chatting
Jon was extra social and went around pouring wine for artists and handing out flyers to onlookers. Btw their medium red blend was only $9.90 and absolutely delicious! We went back the next day for more.
The weather was still gloomy but the grounds there are just breathtaking. I could have painted there all week! I settled on these droopy irises though, since they really seemed to express how I was physically feeling at that point in the trip.
This is my personal favorite painting of the trip, and was also coincidentally one that I did just for myself.
By the end of the day I was feeling pretty good. My headache was gone, my social battery high, and then we realized it was probably thanks to the two glasses of wine. I’ll have to add a bottle to my medicine kit.
Day 4 - Sunday, March 04
The deadline to get framed paintings in was 10am so we got up early and had them all submitted by 9. The gallery supplied delicious yogurt parfaits and pastries for the artists to enjoy.
We had some time to kill so we put on our treasure hunting hats and went to some yard sales that we had eyed the day prior. Definitely would have liked to explore more, these are the types where you find some real gems!
All of this for $9!
Lunch was at Colibri’s new contemporary sister gallery, Cura Contemporary, down the street, and they kindly offered a great discount for the artists. The gallery is worth traveling to see, it’s AMAZING. So much impressive art, including ceramics. The displays were very hands on and the whole experience was very cool and interactive.
At 3 we headed back to Colibri for the awards presentation and opening. The artwork was all SO good, and it was really exciting to see everything that people had done over the week. Huge congrats to first place winner, Sergio Lopez, second place winner, Kristian Matthews, Third place Samantha Buller, and Honorable Mention, Cleo Vilett.
Sergio Lopez
Kristian Matthews
Samantha Buller
Cleo Vilett
I’d be lying to say I wasn’t deflated to walk away empty handed and no sales, but it’s too easy to focus on the negatives when there were actually countless good things about the trip. The highlight to me was having Jon at my side. Though it was exhausting and easy to lose ones sanity with the process, we both had plenty of laughs together and have more stories to share. Huge thanks to everyone at Colibri for running another fantastic and memorable event!