Desert Scenes

Plein Air-Mark Monsarrat, Artist

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Plein-Air Oils: Desert Scenes

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The Romance of the Desert

Hot, dry, desolate—but it grows on you. Quirky, anthropomorphic saguaro cactus, prickly pear "pancake" cactus, delicate ocotillos and furry-looking cholla bushes. Then there are the ubiquitous smoke trees, stony hills and mountains, and always the scrubby brush and tumbleweed amid rocks and gravel.

What is it about the desert that attracts? Is it the amazement that anything can survive the inhospitable, harsh climate of 135-degree temperatures and of the negligible rainfall? Or is it the breathtaking beauty of red sunset skies and rocky mountain peaks studded with teal green cactus? But there it is, an undeniable artist's paradise of subtle colors, craggy, spiny shapes, and marked contrasts.

My paintings of the Sonoran desert in and around Phoenix, Arizona, and the low desert of Southern California's Coachella Valley with its beautiful palm trees, bring out the beauty of these rugged lands. They rely on an acquired skill in capturing the essence of land and vegetation seemingly at odds with one another. Pale colors and dark shadows. Soft plant forms and rock-hard edges.