Artist John Cosby has three homes—in Prescott, Arizona; San Clemente, California; and, perhaps his favorite, on the wide-open road. “Staying engaged with the road keeps me interested in the next painting,” Cosby says. For his show hosted by the Laguna Plein Air Painters Association, Looking West, a Portrait of the Places I Love,Cosby highlights these open road adventures, with a focus on the Western landscape and the sea.
Virgin Colors, oil, 18 x 24"
“From my motorhome, I can explore vast areas and paint what moves me,” the artist continues. “I titled the show Looking West for a reason—it gave me a broad interpretation of the subject matter and allowed me paint what I love to paint the most, and show the best of what I found in nature.”
As for his style and technique, Cosby paints on location to infuse the canvas with a palpable sense of the outdoor places that most captivate him. “All of my paintings are started outdoors either by study, on canvas or both,” he says. “I find working from nature lets me see things that I just can’t see any other way. I think that honesty of design, color and atmosphere come through in the finished works.”
Keeping it Chill, oil, 18 x 24"
In works like Keeping it Chill and Stone and Saltwater, we see one such area of the West that has fascinated Cosby for most of his career. “I’ve spent about 35 years painting along the Laguna Beach coast at various times of the year, and in various light and weather conditions,” he says. “The coastline in Laguna has an endless amount of painting material, and I have a hard time separating people from that landscape.
“The lifeguard tower on Main Beach, [depicted in Keeping it Chill], is something I’ve painted many times and no two paintings have turned out the same,” Cosby shares. “I feel like I can truly tell a story when I add my characters in, and I place them in ways that not only lead you through the painting but you can have a lot of fun thinking about what they’re doing.At least I do!”
Stone and Saltwater, oil, 24 x 36"
In a painting like Stone and Saltwater, depiciting crashing waves against rock, Cosby adds that he likes to explore design by painting the water to feel like it’s moving, and “controlling the eye so that it reacts in a certain way as it moves through the painting,” he says. “I find the interaction between land and sea to be one of the most interesting in nature.” This piece was painted along the Laguna Coast from studies and knowledge the artist has collected over the years.
Subtle Flow, oil, 12 x 16"
Besides his seascapes, Cosby will also feature landscape works like Virgin Colors. “Last fall I rented a house for three months near Zion National Park and moved there to get to know the area intimately,” he explains. “As a mountain bike rider, I cover large swaths of land and I see what’s behind the mountains and down in the canyons. I spent many days painting the Virgin River. It weaves through sandstone, making beautiful shapes...[This painting] gave me an opportunity to truly stretch my palette, as all those colors had to be tamed down into something that didn’t look too wild.”
Join Cosby at the LPAPA Gallery for a pre-opening preview and silent auction of the new work on Monday, June 3. An opening reception will be held Thursday, June 6 from 6 to 9 p.m., and the show will continue through July 1. —
Laguna Plein Air Painters Association Gallery, 414 N. Coast Highway Laguna Beach, CA 92651 • (949) 376-3635 • lpapa.org
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