About the Artist
Larry Cannon
I grew up in the Midwest, and moved to San Francisco following Bachelor and Master’s degrees in Architecture. I was not a painter when I made my journey, but found that it created in me an aching need to find a way to express the beauty and spirit of California and the American West. I first tried photography, but that did not fully satisfy my needs. So, I embarked on the life long journey of becoming a painter. I first read dozens of books and looked at hundreds of paintings – settling on a mantra I continue to use to this day: Learn to Look: Look to Learn.
Starting in 2001, I have painted in many juried and invitational plein air events including those in Laguna Beach, Sonoma, Telluride, Sedona, Rocky Mountain National Park, Carmel and Borrego Springs. Discovering plein air painting led to an ever deepening appreciation for the land and sea around me, and a greater spiritual engagement with Nature. I have long had a strong emotional and intellectual connection with nature and her infinite variety of moods. In my seascapes especially, I respond to the meeting of land, sea and sky, and to the realization that the same conflict between irresistible forces and immovable objects have shaped the land and human events since time began. I love painting the sea where I can sense the energy of the waves, the wind and the clouds that were born days ago and thousands of miles away.
I do not consider myself a watercolorist, but rather an artist who expresses his art through this most challenging of mediums. I paint in watercolor because of its fluidity which expresses so well the flowing forces that I see and feel in Nature. My technique of fluid overlapping brushstrokes has grown from the study of 19th Century British and American masters of the medium and a close observation of the insights of other painters with a special appreciation for the California Impressionists - especially the master watercolorist Percy Gray. Seeing an exhibition of his work in Carmel early in my painting career literally changed my life.
My watercolors have been included in All-Media exhibitions at the following venues:
MUSEUM EXHIBITIONS
SAN DIEGO MUSEUM OF ART 1998 San Diego
AUTRY MUSEUM OF THE AMERICAN WEST 2014 2016 2017 Los Angeles
USC FISHER MUSEUM OF ART 2013 2015 Los Angeles
FREDERICK R. WEISMAN MUSEUM OF ART 2009 2015 2018 2021 Malibu
MINNESOTA MARINE ART MUSEUM 2017 2024 Winona, MN
MYSTIC SEAPORT MUSEUM 2017 Mystic, CT
CHESAPEAKE BAY MARITIME MUSEUM 2017 St. Michaels MD
LAGUNA MUSEUM OF ART 2010 2012 Laguna Beach, CA
LOS ANGELES MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY 2019 Los Angeles
BENNINGTON CENTER FOR THE ARTS 2009 2016 2017 Bennington, VT
PASADENA MUSEUM OF HISTORY 2014 2023 Pasadena
NAPA VALLEY MUSEUM 2005 2007 2009 Yountville, CA
ART ACADEMY MUSEUM 2017 Easton, VA
THE MUSCARELLE MUSEUM 2017 Williamsburg, VA
BOWERS MUSEUM OF ART 2022 Santa Ana. CA, CA
HILBERT MUSEUM OF ART 2020 2021 Orange CA
COOS BAY MUSEUM OF ART 2022 Coos Bay, OR
CHANNEL ISLANDS MUSEUM OF ART 2017 2019 Oxnard CA
CALIFORNIA MUSEUM OF CONTEMPORARY ART 2019 Pasadena
PACIFIC GROVE MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY 2019 Monterey, CA
SANTA PAULA MUSEUM OF ART 2014 2017 Santa Paula, CA
SAINT MARY’S MUSEUM OF ART 2016 2025 Orinda, CA
HAGGIN MUSEUM OF ART 2014 Stockton, CA
OCEANSIDE MUSEUM OF ART 2011 2019 Oceanside, CA
TRITON MUSEUM OF ART 2007 2008 Santa Clara, CA
THE ALBANY INSTITUTE OF HISTORY AND ART 2024 Albany, NY
A Moment in Time: was selected as a Semi-Finalist in the American Renewal Center (ARC) 15th International Salon Exhibition
DISTINCTIONS
California Art Club (CAC) - Artist Member
American Society of Marine Artists (ASMA) - Signature Member
Laguna Plein Air Painters Association (LPAPA) - Signature Member
California Watercolor Association (CWA) - Signature Member
San Francisco Art Commission - Former Commissioner
RECENT AWARDS
2021 CALIFORNIA ART CLUB EXCELLENCE IN TRADITIONAL FINE ART Winter: Winter Solace (Honorable Mention Award)
2020 Huse Skelly Fine Art Gallery: California Dreamin' Exhibition First Place Award and Honorable Mention Award
2018 Plein Air Salon Competition: April/May Best Watercolor Award
2018 FineArtStudioOnline BoldBrush Competition: March Outstanding Watercolor Award
2017 Plein Air Salon Competition: February/March Best Watercolor Award
2016 Plein Air Salon Competition: June/July Best Depiction of Water Award
NATIONAL EXHIBITIONS
2023 AMERICAN SOCIETY OF MARINE ARTISTS - 19th National Exhibition
2017 AMERICAN SOCIETY OF MARINE ARTISTS - West Regional Exhibition
2017 AMERICAN IMPRESSIONIST SOCIETY - Impressions: Small Works Exhibition
2016 CALIFORNIA WATERCOLOR ASSOCIATION - Signature Members Exhibition
Third Place Award
2016 CALIFORNIA PLEIN AIR PAINTERS - International Plein Air Competition
Award of Excellence
2015 AMERICAN IMPRESSIONIST SOCIETY - Sixteenth Annual National Exhibition
2015 AMERICAN SOCIETY OF MARINE ARTISTS - Sixteenth Annual National Exhibition
2014 SANTA CRUZ ART LEAGUE - 84th Annual Statewide Exhibition
2013 EN PLEIN AIR, AN INTERNATIONAL ART EXHIBITION / A Charles Reiffel Tribute / The San Diego Museum of Art Artists Guild / San Diego, CA
2008 CALIFORNIA WATERCOLOR ASSOCIATION - Signature Members Exhibition
Honorable Mention Award
2004 MARIN SOCIETY OF ARTISTS - First National Exhibition
Third Place Award
2004+ CALIFORNIA WATERCOLOR ASSOCIATION - Multiple National Exhibitions
PUBLICATIONS
PAINTING CALIFORNIA: Seascapes and Beach Towns: Paintings of the California Art Club
By Jean Stern and Molly Siple
In association with the California Art Club
Published by Skira Risolli International Books
CALIFORNIA LIGHT: A Century of Landscapes: Paintings of the California Art Club
By Jean Stern and Molly Siple
In association with the California Art Club
Published by Skira Risolli International Books
In celebration of the California Art Club's 100th Anniversary
THE AMERICAN SOCIETY OF MARINE ARTIST (ASMA) News and Journal
Winter 2023
Cover and profile article by Nicolas Fox ASMA President
AMERICAN ART COLLECTOR MAGAZINE
April 2017 Artist Focus Editorial Feature
THE ARTISTIC TOUCH 5
Watercolor painting techniques and inspiration from more than 100 artists
By Chris Unwin
Published by North Lights Books
PLEIN AIR MAGAZINE
September 2013 Editorial Feature
Artist Profile
SOUTHWEST ART MAGAZINE
December 2012 Editorial Feature
Master Coastal Painters
AMERICAN ART COLLECTOR MAGAZINE
April 2013 Editorial Feature
Wonderous Waterways: Paintings of Seascapes, Rivers & Lakes
AMERICAN ART COLLECTOR MAGAZINE
June 2013 Artist Focus Editorial Feature
