Kathleen Elsey Painting Workshops / California Paintings

”Old Mission Santa Barbara”
The Queen of California Missions
  18 x 24 by Kathleen Elsey  signed lower left

I have painted the Old Mission many times since I live just six blocks away. Victor and I were married here in the rose garden. And I visit it almost daily while walking Lulu every morning around the neighborhood. This painting was made in early morning when the sun was hanging low in the sky shining on the mission facade making it a beautiful yellow. Every year, during the Kathleen Elsey Painting Workshop in Santa Barbara, I bring the plein air painters here to paint for the day. You have a choice of painting this signature view of the mission and rose gardens or paint just the rose gardens, or painters may look to the right and paint the meadow, pepper trees and mountains, or look in the opposite direction and paint an historical row of charming 1920‘s adobe homes with lovely gardens in front. I usually do a painting demonstration of the mission view like in the painting above. It is a perfect location for the workshop group there are so many options of what to paint. There are always painters there. Many workshops and painting classes end up at the Mission and many painters come on their own to enjoy the peace, beauty and light to make a plein air painting.

The historical Mission Santa Barbara was the tenth of the California missions to be founded by the Spanish Franciscans. It was established on the Feast of St. Barbara, Dec 4, 1786. Padre Junipero Serra, who founded the first nine missions, had died 2 years earlier. Serra had planned to build this mission, raising the cross at the presidio of Santa Barbara in 1782. It was Padre Fermin Francisco de Lasuen, his successor, who raised the cross here and placed Padre Antonio Paterna, a companion of Serra, in charge. Paterna put up the first buildings and made the first converts. The original buildings were of adobe. As the years passed, there was progress and development. There were three adobe churches here, each larger than the other, before the present church. The third was destroyed by earthquake in 1812. Thereafter the present church was planned. It was finished and dedicated in1820. The present friary residence was built gradually, first one story, then a second was added. It was not finished until 1870. The beautiful fountain in front of the Mission was built in 1808. The earthquake of June 29, 1925 damaged the Mission Church and friary considerably. Restoration work was completed in 1927 and the towers reinforced in 1953.

You might also like to see these two paintings. "Mission Morning Mass" by Kathleen Elsey and also "Old Mission with Olive Trees" by Kathleen Elsey both painted plein air in Santa Barbara, California.