California sea lions

What a trip it was! The whole package…great scenery, interesting animals, terrific traveling companions who are also great artists and, in 2013, the exhibition at the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum to top it off.

I’ll be blogging about specific aspects of this experience and the art that I plan to create from it between now and showtime, but today I thought I’d share an overview of some of my favorite images, an album, if you will.

And, for this coming Mongolia Monday, I’ll compare and contrast Mongolia’s Gobi with the part of the Sonora Desert that I have now visited.

condo view — View from the condo I shared with four other artists.

carel — Someone took pictures of almost everything. Here's Carel Brest van Kempen photographing ants.

Predator water beetle; waterhole in Nacapuli Canyon

As yet unidentified lizard; Nacapuli Canyon

estero — Estero Solado; an estuary ringed by three species of mangrove

Roseate spoonbills feeding in the estero

The turkey vulture who wouldn't abandon "his" fish

One of about six species of fiddler crabs living on the shores of the estero

willets — Willets on the beach near the condo in nice morning light

pelicans fishing — Pelican feeding frenzy off-shore in San Carlos

Heiner, plein air — The boat made it possible for the plein air painters to get to great spots like this

Heerman's gull; almost at eye level from the boat's dingy

San Pedro Island; we spent a day birdwatching and snorkeling along its three mile length

BF colony — Blue-footed booby colony; the white is guano

BF booby — Blue-footed booby; an artist favorite

sea lion close up — Male California sea lion

Sea%20of%20Cortez%20Artist%20Field%20Trip,%20March%2019-26,%202011 — Group shot- photo by Molly Moore- Field Trip to San Carlos, Sonora, Mexico, March 19 - 26, 2011. Pictured are Linda Bittner, Carel Pieter Brest van Kempen, DeVere Burt, Andrew Denman, Kim Diment, Kim Duffek, Cathy Ferrell, Susan Fisher, Susan Fox, Mary Garrish, Ann Geise, Shawn Gould, Mary Helsaple, Heiner Hertling, John Kobald, Deian Moore, John Pitcher, Don Rambadt, Paul Rhymer, Rebecca Richman, Carolyn Thome, Christine Sarazin, Rachelle Siegrist, Wes Siegrist, Martha Thompson, Glenn Thompson, Sue Westin, Ronnie Williford, Debbe Wilson, and Nicholas Wilson. (Not pictured are John Agnew and Molly Moore). Leading the field trip was Richard C. Brusca, Ph.D. The trip was organized by David J. Wagner, Ph.D. for artists to produce a body of artwork for a museum exhibition entitled The Sea of Cortez, produced by David J. Wagner, L.L.C., and scheduled to premiere at The Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum Art Institute from March 16 through June 2, 2013.

I left Humboldt County this past Sunday morning, picked up fellow artist and colleague Andrew Denman at his home in the San Francisco Bay Area and we journeyed south to San Diego, California, camping out a couple of nights at our wonderful state parks along the way.

The event activities started the next day with an all-day whale watching trip. We didn’t see any whales, but there was lots else to get photos of for possible future paintings – bottlenosed dolphins, California sea lions, harbor seals, gulls and terns, phalaropes, brown pelicans, blue-footed boobies (yes, that’s a real bird and it does have light blue feet), brown boobies, cormorants, a couple of jellyfish and, the really rare sight of the day, a sunfish. Here’s a few images: