Painting plein air allows Laurel to be present, to see the colors and light and to fully experience the landscape she is painting. Her painting becomes the essence of her response to this experience.
Laurel especially enjoys painting the coastal regions of California. She feels Santa Barbara County's remaining open spaces are among the most beautiful coastal regions in the world. Laurel believes that by showing the beauty and uniqueness of these coastal open spaces through her paintings, it helps to draw public attention and appreciation.
Laurel Mines: 'The changing light and colors of the California Coast fascinate me: the bold, dark intensity of a cypress tree's foliage etched by the brilliant sun, the way at other times the coastal fog transforms objects, and smudges the edges of land, sky and sea. Sometimes the sea is so blue, it hurts the eyes, while the land looks soft in the distance, but prickly up close. I paint to capture these moments of light, color and place. My paintings invite the viewer to stand where I am and to share the experience and feeling of the moment.
In my still-life paintings, I attempt to convey the intimacy of a glance: the sunlight and dry warmth of summer, the fullness of colors and voluptuous abundance, a sense of well being.'
Laurel Mines studied painting at the University of California Santa Barbara, where she was a student of Irma Cavat. Laurel continued her studies with a number of nationally known landscape painters. She is a member of several art associations, including SCAPE (Southern California Artists Painting for the Environment), which donates proceeds from the sales of paintings to preserve threatened lands. Her paintings have been exhibited widely and have received many awards.
Laurel Mines works in both oil and acrylic on canvas.
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