After purchasing this beautiful barrel cactus in Tucson at Desert Survivors Native Plant Nursery last year, I remember putting it out on the balcony of our hotel room and watching in delight as broad-billed hummingbirds visited its flame-like flowers. I'd enjoy setting aside a slow afternoon just to see if my local hummingbirds here in San Diego do the same.
An old orchid friend
This Dendrobium lindleyi (formerly aggregatum) once hung in a west facing window in downtown Detroit, an east facing one in the Central West End of St. Louis and now lives outdoors in San Diego under a queen palm. This species blooms more prolifically with a winter rest from about Thanksgiving through spring which it doesn’t really get around here because of our winter rains. I do withhold fertilizer until I see new growth on it in the spring, though. It’s pleasantly fragrant.
Rainblow
I’m getting back out on the water this weekend for the nonrefundable day trip I booked before the pandemic hit the U.S.. The original date was understandably punted by the whale watching company in question from northbound gray whale season to blue whale season. Yes, there will be a face covering involved. This shot of a humpback whale exhaling was taken in February somewhere between Dana Point and Catalina Island, California.
Argentine ants strike again
Saddened but not surprised is how I'd describe myself this morning after finding the Anna's hummingbird nest I'd been watching overrun by Argentine ants. I'd been hoping for the best and mentally preparing myself for the worst as is advisable when observing nature closely. She was still on her nest yesterday evening with no peeping coming from it. There was clearly a horror story unfolding near the house sometime between then and getting up to make coffee. They've been known to drive the parent off of the nest if they discover it in order to attack and feed on the baby birds. They also farm honeydew-producing sucking insects like scale, mealybugs and aphids that have decimated many of my established native plants. I'm hoping to save the rest by employing knowledgeable nurseryman Greg Rubin's approach to combating this invasive species; it's linked to in this informative blog post by the California Chaparral Institute. I also found this article from the University of California Riverside Center for Invasive Species Research helpful in gaining a better understanding what we're up against.
World Tree with Ignes Fatui
One of the reasons I began a (nearly) daily blog of an image of my art or a photograph that celebrates nature is to revisit work that I didn’t give much attention to after making. I’d rather move on to making more art than talk about it. This is how it ends up lying in my flat file waiting for wildfires to rage westward during a Santa Ana wind event and consume it rather than hanging on a patron’s wall being appreciated.
Trees pervade my work. Often their outlines are only alluded to in my dreamscapes, other times they’re more defined like in this piece. It’s all about what I feel like working on in the moment and how. Like most of my tree-inspired art, this was a take on a particular live oak I’ve paid my respects to repeatedly. It’s growing in Tecolote Canyon Natural Park near downtown San Diego. Clearly I took liberty with the piece and added ignes fatui (foolish fire), or will-o'-the-wisp, known for leading travelers astray in some folklore.
The original mixed media painting is available and prints on a variety of surfaces may be purchased by tapping on the image if you’re interested.
World Tree with Ignes Fatui. 2014. Transparent watercolor and powdered soft pastel on 300lb hot press paper. 14" x 18" (36 x 46cm).
Refuge
I’ve taken to checking the bromeliads for Baja California tree frogs (Pseudacris hypochondriaca) and am often rewarded with an adorable sight. Queen’s tears (Billbergia nutans) seems to be a favorite. I’ve also found them under the spines of cacti multiple times…there are many options around here for hiding from predators and strong sunlight.
Embrace
Belding’s orange-throated whiptail (Aspidoscelis hyperythrus ssp. beldingi) is a striking lizard subspecies that calls southern California and Baja California, Mexico home. I was in the right place at the right time today (and with a telephoto lens on) to witness multiple stages of mating behavior between these two. I also saw one that's regenerating its tail. They like foraging in the leaf litter under the plants that's putting nutrients back into the soil as it breaks down. I do maintain things a bit in that respect with fire safety in mind, but having a picture perfect garden in the traditional sense is at odds with my goal of creating habitat for wildlife. Sightings like this one often make my day.
A first bloom
I saw Matilija poppies in bloom for the first time years ago at a trailhead in Rose Canyon here in San Diego and my jaw dropped. Miniature flowers that I have to keep my nose down to find and appreciate hold a special place in my heart, but the attention this giant poppy commanded was undeniable. I germinated some seeds given to me by a botanist friend, rushed their move into the ground and they didn’t survive. This nursery acquired plant is blooming for the first time today after two years of being planted and another will follow shortly. Its fragrance is reminiscent of roses.
Flight
Vanda (formerly Neofinetia) falcata ‘Unkai’ is filling the evening with its suburb fragrance. I purchased this small beauty from a dear friend in Manchester, Michigan who owns New World Orchids.
Coast cholla (Cylindropuntia prolifera)
This is my favorite cholla species. Yes, I have a favorite cholla species. The one I purchased from Moosa Creek a few years ago bloomed for the first time this spring. This photo is of one growing in situ near the waterfall in Los Peñasquitos Canyon Preserve.
You can learn more about this plant here.
Dolphins with Bioluminescence and Anthropogenic Starlight
My latest mixed media painting is the third I’ve made in response to San Diego’s 2020 red tide event that lit up our beaches. There were a few moments enjoyed during multiple visits to appreciate this phenomenon late at night when few others were around when I thought, yeah, I have to make a painting inspired by that. Dolphins, sea birds and California sea lions making big splashes in the water resulted in the bioluminescent glow emitted by Lingulodinium polyedra, a dinoflagellate species. In this dreamscape rooted in reality, I’ve shown the light pollution trapped by the marine layer in contrast to the subdued glow of nature. It’s dark over Torrey Pines State Natural Reserve to the right of the composition and the open ocean to the far left due to humanity’s more limited physical presence in these places.
Dolphins with Bioluminescence and Anthropogenic Starlight. 2020. Transparent watercolor and powdered soft pastel on 300lb hot press paper. 14" x 20" (36 x 51cm).
Conflagration included in 'OCCCA@40'
My mixed media painting titled Conflagration was accepted into the Orange County Center for Contemporary Art’s invitational exhibition celebrating their 40th year. It’s an online event for obvious reasons.
Conflagration. 2019. Transparent watercolor and powdered soft pastel on 300lb rough press paper. 15" x 20" (38 x 51cm).
Mariposa lily
When I first saw Weed's mariposa lilies blooming years ago in Los Peñasquitos Canyon Preserve, I was struck by their unique beauty. Mariposa is the Spanish word for "butterfly" and it's easy to see how they earned that common name when one witnesses them fluttering in the breeze. As with too many of my favorite species that have a limited range in our southern California and Baja California region, its conservation status is vulnerable due to habitat loss from development.
Weed’s mariposa lily (Calochortus weedii var. weedii)
White Dove
Echinocereus pentalophus ‘White Dove’
A new litter
Discarded gloves and masks now litter our streets, parks and beaches. How many of them were accidentally dropped? How many were tossed aside purposefully?
The carbon cycle
An Anna's hummingbird has built a lovely nest of spider silk, lichens and other detritus in our garden. I was comforted by the brightness of her eyes and the knowledge that she's keeping two, minuscule eggs warm as I buried a pet goldfish of seven years who succumbed to his tumor today. He may as well nourish the grapefruit tree.
Lying in Wait
The black light flashlight I have on my key ring from the gift shop at Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument in Ajo, Arizona helped me locate this California swollenstinger scorpion (Anuroctonus pococki) . As you can see, scorpions fluoresce under black light.
Better late than never
Self-promotion is the dullest and most nauseating aspect of being a professional artist for me. If I were better at it, I’d have mentioned sooner that a mixed media painting of mine, Los Peñasquitos Canyon XI, was selected for inclusion in Into the Light, an exhibition at the Orange County Center for Contemporary Art in Santa Ana, California. Though the receptions have come and gone, this piece and many other fine works I’m proud to have mine hanging near will be on display through March, 28th 2020. It was inspired by an afternoon ramble through the magical tunnels of oaks, sycamores and understory in the nature preserve I live, work and play at being a naturalist within. I’m so dreadful at pretending to be the interesting, artsy type people want to get to know that I didn’t even put on my name tag at the first reception of the show and scurried back down the 5 to San Diego after quietly making two rounds of the gallery to enjoy everyone’s contributions. The second I missed because I was exhausted after a day of hiking with a heavy backpack of camera equipment at Torrey Pines State Natural Reserve while taking photos and picking up trash.
Los Peñasquitos Canyon XI. Transparent watercolor and powdered soft pastel on 300lb hot press paper. 13” x 19” (33 x 48cm).
Two recent pieces inspired by our local preserves are more somber. Manifest Destiny is my visual response to a nearby canyon finger being bulldozed for development. While this had been the plan for a long time, hearing the destruction taking place from my home studio and then seeing how a once verdant section of chaparral had been flattened was distressing. There doesn't seem to be enough destruction of habitat to fill our insatiable desire for expansion. Had I not been a kid living many states away when our house was built, I'd very likely have been opposed to its creation where it is. I've been doing my best to give the land outside of the structure's footprint back to the local wildlife by planting native flora it can use. It's a joy to welcome all of the songbirds, raptors, insects, coyotes, snakes, bobcats, mule deer and others to the yard.
Manifest Destiny. Transparent watercolor and powdered soft pastel on 300lb hot press paper. 14” x 20” (35 x 51cm).
Los Peñasquitos Canyon Preserve with Anthropogenic Starlight is an observation of our disappearing night skies. The pervasive glow exemplifies humanity's exploitation of this small planet we share with other living things. Light from our collective restlessness has snuffed our views of the seemingly timeless wonder that is the Milky Way in all but the most rural areas that some of us are hell-bent on developing further.
Los Penasquitos Canyon Preserve With Anthropogenic Starlight. Transparent watercolor and powdered soft pastel on 300lb cold press paper. 14” x 20” (35 x 51cm).
Less depressing is this recent piece inspired by a cloud-top green flash I was fortunate to witness in La Jolla by the Children’s Pool, a beach famous for its adorable harbor seals who often swim right up to me in nearby La Jolla Cove when I’m there snorkeling.
Sea of Fog with Green Flash. Transparent watercolor with powdered soft pastel on 300lb rough press paper. 14” x 19” (36 x 48cm).
As is most often the case, clicking on any of the above images of my landscape paintings will take you to a reputable art print service with a money back guarantee. If you’re interested in owning one of my originals, shoot me a message through the tab here that reads “Contact.” Thanks for supporting living artists.
—Robin Street-Morris
The northern elephant seals of San Simeon, California
Earlier this year, I was lucky to be able to spend some time observing and photographing northern elephant seals (Mirounga angustirostris) on a beach in San Simeon, a charming town on the Central Coast located roughly halfway between Los Angeles and San Francisco. The circle of life was on full display, a reminder of both the beauty and brutality of nature.
Paintings inspired by Los Peñasquitos Canyon Preserve and Del Mar Mesa Preserve
I thought it was worth showcasing part of my ever-growing body of landscape art that celebrates views from the chaparral-covered mesas, hillsides and riparian corridors of Los Peñasquitos Canyon Preserve and Del Mar Mesa Preserve. These are unique and beautiful habitats that are becoming increasingly rare in San Diego County as shortsighted developers continue their attempts to level them.
These mixed media pieces were made by combining professional, transparent watercolor pigments and powdered soft pastels of the highest quality on 300lb Arches hot or cold press paper to imbue them with an ethereal, dream-like quality.
Los Peñasquitos Canyon XVII. 2019. Transparent watercolor and powdered soft pastel on 300lb hot press paper. 15" x 19" (38 x 48cm).
Los Peñasquitos Canyon Preserve I. Watercolor and pastel on 300lb hot press paper.
14" x 19.75" (36 x 50cm).
Chaparral Path To Black Mountain I. Watercolor and pastel on 300lb hot press paper. 12" x 18" (31 x 46cm).
Afterglow. Watercolor and pastel on 300lb hot press paper. 14" x 19" (36 x 48cm).
Crepuscule (Los Peñasquitos Canyon XIV)". Watercolor and soft pastel on 300lb cold press paper. 14" x 19" (36 x 48cm).
Los Peñasquitos Canyon VI. Watercolor and pastel on 300lb cold press paper.
14" x 19" (36 x 48cm).
Los Peñasquitos Canyon VII (Approaching Storm). Watercolor and soft pastel on 300lb cold press paper. 13" x 19" (33 x 48cm).
Los Peñasquitos Canyon with Black Mountain III. Watercolor and soft pastel on 300lb cold press paper. 14" x 20" (36 x 51cm).
Los Peñasquitos Canyon VIII (the Swallows Return). Watercolor and soft pastel on 300lb cold press paper. 13" x 19" (33 x 48cm).
Last Light with Moonrise over Iron Mountain. Watercolor and soft pastel on 300lb cold press paper. 14" x 19" (36 x 53cm
Los Peñasquitos Canyon IV. Watercolor and pastel on 300lb hot press paper.
12" x 16" (31 x 41cm).
Los Peñasquitos Canyon XI. Watercolor and soft pastel on 300lb hot press paper. 13" x 19" (33 x 48cm).
Los Peñasquitos Canyon XIII (Coastal Fog at Dawn). Watercolor and soft pastel on 300lb cold press paper. 14" x 19" (36 x 48cm).
Chaparral Path to Black Mountain II. Watercolor and soft pastel on 300lb cold press paper.
15" x 19" (38 x 48cm).
Coastal Preserve with Invasive Mustard Plant (Lopez Canyon I). Watercolor and pastel on 300lb hot press paper. 15" x 19" (38 x 48cm).
Departure (Crows at Dawn). Watercolor and soft pastel on 140lb cold press paper. 13" x 19" (33 x 48cm).
Asterism over Black Mountain. Watercolor and soft pastel on 300lb hot press paper. 14" x 21" (36 x 53cm).
Bank of Passing Clouds. Transparent watercolor and soft pastel on 300lb hot press paper. 15" x 20" (38 x 51cm).
Los Peñasquitos Canyon Preserve XII (Walking with Bats and Owls). Watercolor and soft pastel on 300lb hot press paper. 14" x 19" (36 x 48cm).
Los Peñasquitos Canyon IX. Watercolor and soft pastel on 300lb cold press paper. 13" x 20" (33 x 51cm).
Westbound at Dawn. Watercolor and soft pastel on 300lb cold press paper. 14" x 20" (36 x 51cm).
Los Peñasquitos Canyon XV. Watercolor and soft pastel on 300lb cold press paper. 14" x 20" (36 x 51cm).
Crepuscule II. Transparent watercolor and soft pastel on 300lb cold press paper. 13" x 19" (33 x 48cm).
Waxing Moon with Chaparral and Power Lines. Watercolor and pastel on 300lb hot press paper.
8" x 16" (20 x 41cm).
Winter Storm (Mammatus Clouds over Black Mountain). Transparent watercolor and powdered soft pastel on 300lb hot press paper. 14" x 19" (36 x 48cm).
Los Peñasquitos Canyon XVI. Transparent watercolor and powdered soft pastel on 300lb hot press paper. 14" x 20" (36 x 51cm).