Barbara Davies

I use the luminosity of oil paints and old world glazing techniques to capture the fragile beauty of the disappearing wild landscape of California. Each scene in this collection is one I’ve savored and hoped to capture. With sketch pad, small canvas, paint and camera in my backpack, I reach locations for my paintings while hiking, kayaking, off-roading and even by horseback. The resulting plein air oil sketches are used for visual reference in my Loomis studio, where I create my large format paintings. Collectors and galleries have commented that my paintings “glow”, which is a result of carefully applied, thin layers of pigment, oils and varnish.

My choice of color, form and line help me to capture my impressions of a landscape fast vanishing from today’s modern world. I hope that, in some small way, my paintings will remind the viewer of the beauty of our wild spaces, and the urgent need to protect our fragile environment.

In addition to oil paintings, I create miniature, 3 dimensional ponds featuring fish, turtles and water plants. The “ponds” are contained in hand-carved, natural wood bowls or vessels, or natural sea shells. The ponds are created by painting between layers of cured resin; this approach, while painstaking, gives the a illusion of depth. Many of the Koi in my creations are modeled after the fish in the Flower Farm, Loomis, Koi pond.

I am fortunate to be able to combine my passion for art with my love of nature and open space conservation. A percentage of all sales is donated to land and wildlife conservation, including wild horse management.