Where the Vines Meet the Sea

There are certain California landscapes that seem to hold two worlds at once.

Wine country can feel warm, earthy and deeply grounded, with rows of vines, dry grasses, olive greens, rust, burgundy and ochre. Then somewhere beyond all of that, the land opens and suddenly there is blue.

That contrast was the starting point for my newest painting, Where the Vines Meet the Sea.

This 36x48 original palette knife painting is inspired by California’s coastal wine country, where vineyards rise and fall across the hills and the Pacific appears in the distance.

I also really wanted this one to feel like autumn.

At this time of year, I always find myself wanting richer color in the studio. The cooler coastal blues are still there, but I wanted to bring in the colors of the season, with burgundy, rust, coral, ochre, muted gold and deeper olive, and let them move through the vineyard in a way that felt warm without becoming heavy.

Autumn color in California is different from the dramatic fall color you see in other parts of the country. It can be more subtle. It shows up in dry grasses, vineyards, changing leaves, warmer earth tones and that slightly lower, softer light.

That subtlety was what I was after here.

I wanted the foreground to feel layered and seasonal, with deeper burgundy and rust moving through the vines, while the landscape gradually cools as it recedes toward the water. The contrast between those warm autumn tones and the blue-gray distance is probably my favorite part of the painting.

As with most of my California landscape paintings, this isn’t meant to be one exact location. I’m much more interested in capturing the feeling of a place, the atmosphere, the color relationships, the distance, and the way your eye moves through the landscape.

Texture is a big part of that for me. I use a palette knife to build up the surface in layers, allowing some areas to stay loose and expressive while others become quieter. I like paintings to have movement, but I also want them to breathe.

That balance between richness and restraint is something I’m especially interested in right now.

The warmer vineyard colors give the painting depth and seasonality, while the cool horizon keeps it open. It feels unmistakably autumnal to me, but still very much California.

Where the Vines Meet the Sea
36 x 48 x 1.5 inches
Original palette knife painting
Available directly through my studio.