Watercolor Masters: Landscape

Northern California watercolor artists Dale Laitinen, Carolyn Lord, Barbara Nechis, and Juan Peña are nationally known for their landscape paintings. Each artist works in a California Regionalist Style with a unique interpretation, and has been working in this medium for most of their adult lives. Landscapes and watercolor have a natural affinity to transmute atmosphere and form into works of vibrant beauty.

These artists come from varied backgrounds but show a mastery of the medium by the quality of their work and for their inclusion in: corporate and private collections; popular magazine publications; books; DVDs; and watercolor society memberships. They are also renowned local and national watercolor instructors and are sought after as jurors. All have studied with some of the noted icons of watercolor painting.

The application of watercolor on paper is an exacting and temperamental medium. To create highlights and to support a feeling of luminosity, the white of the cotton paper must be preserved. Color can be built up through translucent glazes with dark paint laid over light to give complexity to the composition.

The idea for this show arose from the desire of curators Allison Spreadborough and Jennifer Tachera to invite these four esteemed Northern California artists to the Sacramento area to showcase a sample of their interpretations of the landscape genre.