Ray Strong, Landscape Painter
(1905-2006)
| Ray Strong was often cited as “"the dean of the plein air movement"” in Santa Barbara. The noted landscape painter, muralist, poet, and conservationist started painting in Oregon as a young boy. He pursued his training at the California School of Fine Arts and the Art Students League in New York. Strong's desire to share his enthusiasm and delight in the arts and nature led him to join with Maynard Dixon, Frank Van Sloun and George Post to found the San Francisco Art Students League (Ansel Adams, Imogene Cunningham and Dorothea Lange were soon added to the League's eminent faculty). Ray also co-founded the Santa Barbara Art Institute, Gallery 113, and the Oak Group. The latter is a union of conservation-minded plein air (“open air”) painters centered in Santa Barbara. Through their exhibitions, these artist/activists have raised tens of thousands of dollars forthe Nature Conservancy and other environmental organizations to help preserve endangered landscapes. |
Indian Summer |
Big Sur Coast |
Strong's irrepressible drive to spread his naturalist vision never lessened with the years; at the age of 101, he participated in the Marin Agricultural Land Trust Exhibit in Nicasio. Dioramas, murals and paintings of the artist are displayed in numerous venues throughout the United States including: the Natural History Museum in Santa Barbara; San Francisco's Academy of Sciences; the Morro Bay Museum of Natural History; Lassen, Rainier, and White Sands National Parks; Keene Valley Parish (New York); and the Smithsonian Museum of American Art. Ray died at the age of101 on July 3, 2006. << See Additional Works >>
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© 2006 • All
images belong to the Strong Family Trust and may not be reproduced
in any way. |
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