"The Palms of Las Palmas" Mexico, coastal landscape painting by Robin Weiss

"The Palms of Las Palmas"   7x10 oil on panel  $300

After we returned from Mexico I did some paintings from the photos I took while the light and colors of the Baja were still fresh in my mind, There were so many scenes at Las Palmas I wanted to paint but only had time for one. This scene , looking back to the palms from the beach, was lighting up late in the afternoon when I captured it with my trusty pocket camera.

"Las Palmas Beach" Mexico, plein air coastal oil painting by Robin Weiss

Las Palmas Beach 12x9 oil on panel   Sold

Our last day in Mexico we were free to relax and paint on our own.  Jolyn took us to a favorite beach and painting spot called Las Palmas or Palm Beach. 


Jolyn and Rob painting at Las Palmas

We found a great spot to set up and enjoyed the afternoon working at our own pace. There were just a few other families on the beach, It felt like we had the whole place to ourselves...

Pelican Pete

Well,  except for our friend Pete who kept coming by to check on how the paintings were coming along.   Pete hung around all day. Guess he needed some company and we stayed long enough to enjoy a beautiful sunset over the Baja.  What a great way to spend our last day in Mexico!  Thank you Tom and Jolyn Moran for hosting this workshop and showing such wonderful hospitality!  To see Jolyns  plein air work click here






Sunset at Las Palmas

I have more paintings to post of Mexico from the photos I took so check back when you have the time......Adios Amigos!

"Cerritos Surf" Mexico, marinescape by Robin Weiss

"Cerritos Surf"   10x10 oil on panel   Sold

 The big draw of Pescadero for Americans and others is the great surfing beach at Cerritos just a few miles from where we were staying. People come from all over to enjoy the soft sand and nice break of the waves.


The palapa at Cerritos

The great thing for my purpose was the large palapa that would provide shade for the painters on the third day of the workshop in Mexico.
 The idea was to get there early enough on Sunday morning to beat all the beach goers that would be showing up to enjoy a day off.....and that we did!  My wife, Ann camped out at the surf club on a deck chair under an umbrella enjoying a good book while we painted the rocks and ocean surf.

This was my demo for the workshop of waves hitting the rocks. I was trying to portray the motion of the water and create design with the rocks. The painting above was done from pictures I took on location using my plein air study for local color.

Frieda working hard

Margi working on her seascape

The students enjoyed the shade and the beautiful day at the beach!  everyone did great even though painting surf can be very challenging ...even for the teacher!

As we were painting several boats raced in through the surf and hauled up on the beach to clean their catch. It was quite a show and a Mexican family who shared the palapa with us was happy to get what was left over after filleting the large fish.

Ann enjoying the view overlooking Cerritos Beach

"Calle Sin Nombre" Mexico, plein air landscape painting by Robin Weiss

"Calle Sin Nombre"   10x10 oil on panel     Sold




Juan Valdez

Calle sin nombre means "street with no name" and there are a lot of those in Mexico!  The sun bakes the red dirt roads and reflects into the very air bathing everything in warm light. I was glad I brought along my trusty, wide brimmed, painting sombrero!  That thing has kept me comfortable in many hot locations.

This view of Pescadero was painted from the top of Jolyns house where she had a traditional palapa built by local Mexicans. Not only does it make a great place to hang out and relax in the shade but it also helps to keep the house cool in the summer when temps can reach 120 degrees!





Painting under the Palapa

After the morning demo we all went up to the palapa to paint the view from a shady spot. I worked on this painting as I taught my process of tackling a landscape. The day before I drew a few thumbnail sketches which I looked at as I worked out the values using a red orange color for the underpainting. 

I also went around and offered suggestions and answered questions from the other artists. I wanted to make sure they didn't get discouraged. Painting landscapes on location is one of the hardest things an artist can do and even the best aren't always successful. When you give it your best shot and still have a stinker, best to chuck it into the nearest arroyo and try another view.

Me and Ann having our morning coffee