Gordon T. McClelland, guest curator, historian and author, discusses Phil Paradise's water color painting entitled, "Fishing Village Near Guaymus, ca." (1946) with Tobi Smith, Executive Director of the California Heritage Museum, during the opening reception of the exhibition "Buena Vista: California Artists in Mexico 1928-1970" on Thursday, November 18, 2010.

The exhibit will open to the public on November 19, 2010 and continue through May 1, 2011. The opening
Mexico is a fascinating country with many areas of extraordinary visual beauty. In the late 1920s, California artists began to discover this beauty as they ventured into Mexico in search of inspirational subject matter and the experience of working in a fresh, new environment.

Buena Vista: California Artists in Mexico 1928  1970 showcases this fifty-two year periodan era when the California Style of watercolor painting gained international recognition for its important contributions to the development and promotion of the medium. 

Prior to 1928 most travel into Baja California was done by wagon or on horseback. In the late 1920s the paving of roads from California into Mexico began. America had a prohibition on the sale and consumption of alcoholic beverages. As a result, many cities and towns just across the Mexican border began promoting the fact that alcoholic consumption was perfectly legal there and that American tourists were welcome at their cantinas and casinos.

Among the first Californians to take advantage of the newly paved roads into Mexico were artists who were affiliated with the California Style of watercolor painting. Many artists central to this California art movement spent time painting in Mexico and the works produced during these expeditions are considered to be an essential component of their overall artistic production. Many of the watercolors, particularly those created in the 1920s and 1930s, are true Regionalist works, offering a refreshing glimpse into how this American ara  in the history of Mexico.