Skidmore Contemporary Art Presents

California Desert Plein Air
Invitational Exhibition

Now Extended Thru Sat July 26, 2025
73130 El Paseo, Suite K
Palm Desert, California 92260

Installation Views

The California Desert Plein Air Invitational Exhibition at Skidmore Contemporary Art is a collaborative endeavor featuring a juried selection of recent works by artist members of the Desert Plein Air Association as well as artists represented by Skidmore Contemporary Art.

Plein air painting is most commonly associated with a gestural manner of brushwork and the direct use of color in the process of painting straight onto canvas or paper in order to capture the ever changing details of weather and the effects of light on the land and in the sky.

The practice of painting outdoors, directly from the landscape (en plein air in French) is nearly synonymous with a style known as California Impressionism. Plein air painting follows the outdoor painting methods that emerged from the Barbizon School in France, the Macchiaioli group in Italy, and the Newlyn School in England.

Plein air painting most famously abetted the burgeoning of French Impressionism, as did advances in engineering and technology. The portable easel that compactly contained a canvas, palette, brushes, and newly patented tubes containing colored paint greatly simplified the endeavor of painting outdoors.

More recently, and most directly, the artists of the Hudson River School in New York were among the first to trek westward  Southern California for its inviting combination of factors so favorable to painting en plein air: a multifaceted terrain with spectacular light in a mild climate.

The exhibition comprises the following works

  

Geoffrey Allen
Splinter, 2025
Watercolor on paper, 12” x 16”
$1,495.

 

Geoffrey Allen
Two Worlds, 2025
Watercolor on paper, 18” x 14”
$1,795.

 

Brooks Anderson
Gardens of Stone, Inland Empire, 2025
Oil on panel, 24” x 48”
$4,500.

 

Naomi Brown
Stormy Sky – Joshua Tree, 2025
Oil on canvas, 30” x 48”
$9,300.

 

John Budicin
Painted Canyon, 2025
Oil on canvas, 14” x 19”
$6,800.

 

John Budicin
As Evening Approaches, 2024
Oil on canvas, 16” x 24”
$8,500.

 

Andy Dickson
Salton Sea Nocturne, 2025
Oil on canvas, 18” x 24”
$3,800.

 

Andy Dickson
4800 Power Lines, Salton Sea, 2025
Oil on canvas, 20” x 20”
$3,600.

 

Andy Dickson
Saddleback Butte State Park, Mojave Desert, 2025
Oil on canvas, 11” x 14”
$1,100.

 

Andy Dickson
La Quinta, 2024
Oil on canvas, 11” x 14”
$1,100.

 

Andy Dickson
Approaching Storm, Salton Sea, 2025
Oil on canvas, 30” x 30”
$4,800.

 

Andy Dickson
Palms at Sunset by Salton Sea, 2024
Oil on canvas, 18" x 24"
$4,200. 

 

Bradley Giles
Mt. San Gorgonio Wildfires, 2020
Oil on canvas, 24” x 48”
$12,500.

 

Nita Harper
Cactus Along the Trail, 2025
Oil on canvas, 22” x 28”
$3,900.

 

David Jenks
Processional, 2025
Oil on canvas, 24” x 48”
$8,000.

David Jenks
Cloud Symphony, 2025
Oil on canvas, 36” x 60”
$12,700.

 

Elaine Mathews
Road to Andreas Canyon, 2025
Oil on canvas, 36” x 48”
$4,000.

 

Lisa Mozzini-McDill
From the Shadows, 2023
Oil on canvas, 20” x 24”
$3,800.

 

Jessica Schiffman
Pointing, 2021
Oil on canvas, 18” x 24”
$1,100.

 

Brighton Smith
Pink Clouds and Mountain, 2024
Oil on canvas, 36” x 48”
$6,500.

 

Mason Williams
Desert Rest, 2024
Oil on canvas, 16” x 20”
$2,500.

 

David Wolfram
Prescott Preserve Palms, 2024
Oil on canvas, 36” x 36”
$4,600.

  

Durre Waseem
Stay in the Shade, 2025
Oil on canvas, 20” x 24”
$3,600.

To inquire about a purchase
email us at
lia@liaskidmore.com
or call/text
310-922-5070