Jake Hinton • February 19, 2025
Plein Air Watercolor Painting Workshop with Geoff Allen
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Capture Nature's Beauty in Borrego Springs
When: March 9–11, 2025 | 9:00 AM – 3:00 PM
Where: Community Resource Center, 587 Palm Canyon Dr, Borrego Springs, CA 92004
Cost: $375 Members | $400 Non-Members
Register Here:
Borrego Art Institute
About the Workshop
Join renowned artist Geoff Allen for an immersive plein air watercolor workshop designed to enhance your outdoor painting skills. Perfect for all levels, this hands-on class focuses on simplifying the art of plein air painting into a few key steps:
- Finding a Subject: Learn to identify captivating scenes.
- Capturing Values: Use quick sketches to separate light from shadow.
- Simplifying Shapes: Streamline complex landscapes into cohesive compositions.
- Creating Dynamics: Add interest with hard vs. soft edges.
What You Need
To make your plein air experience seamless, Geoff recommends preparing the right materials. Watch his Watercolor Plein Air Set-up video for tips on choosing the best tools.
Why Borrego Springs?
Known for its clear skies and dramatic desert beauty, Borrego Springs is an ideal plein air destination. Capture stunning natural features like golden canyons, dynamic light, and vibrant landscapes.
Limited Spots Available
- Group Size: 8–12 participants
- Skill Level: Open to all levels
Don’t miss this opportunity to learn, paint, and be inspired.
>>>
Reflections of Light: Geoff Allen Paints The Palms Pool
Learn More About Borrego Springs
On Wednesday, July 29, at 7pm BSFI presents: A Simple Plan – 1998 – Rated R – 2h 1m A Simple Plan is a gripping neo-noir crime thriller that represents a striking departure from Sam Raimi's reputation as a master of horror and stylized genre filmmaking. Directed by Raimi and written by Scott B. Smith, adapting his own 1993 novel, the film stars Bill Paxton, Billy Bob Thornton, and Bridget Fonda, and is set in rural Minnesota. The story follows brothers Hank (Paxton) and Jacob Mitchell (Thornton), who, along with Jacob's friend Lou (Brent Briscoe), stumble upon a crashed plane in the woods containing $4.4 million in cash. The four — including Hank's wife Sarah (Fonda) — go to great lengths to keep the money secret, but begin to doubt each other's trust, resulting in lies, deceit, and murder. Roger Ebert, who ranked the film fourth on his list of the best films of 1998, praised how rarely a film is "this skillful at drawing us, step by step, into the consequences of criminal action," and Gene Siskel called it "an exceedingly well-directed genre picture" in which Raimi "does an excellent job of presaging the lethal violence that follows." A Simple Plan premiered at the 1998 Toronto International Film Festival to critical acclaim, before a limited US release in 1998. It underperformed at the box office, grossing $16.3 million, but was widely praised by critics. On the awards front, the film earned two Academy Award nominations: one for Best Supporting Actor for Thornton and one for Best Adapted Screenplay for Smith. After Paxton's death in 2017, critic Matt Zoller Seitz declared his performance as Hank the finest of Paxton's career — a fitting testament to a film that, despite its modest box office, has only grown in reputation as one of the most emotionally devastating thrillers of its era. This season’s BSFI movie screenings are being generously underwritten by the Borrego Valley Endowment Fund (BVEF). A Simple Plan — Free BSFI Movie Screening When: Wednesday, July 29 at 7 p.m. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. Where: Borrego Springs Performing Arts Center, 590 Palm Canyon Drive, Borrego Springs Rating/Runtime: Rated R | 2 hours, 1 minute
Marine Science Institute has named Lisa Biasillo its new Executive Director, succeeding longtime leader Marilou Seiff.
East County News Services Looking for an affordable summer outing? San Diego residents can visit select Balboa Park museums free every Tuesday through the park's popular Free Museum Tuesdays program. Each Tuesday features a different participating museum, but on the first Tuesday of every month , residents receive free admission to both the Fleet Science Center and the San Diego Natural History Museum (The Nat) . Visitors simply need to bring a valid photo ID or other proof of San Diego County residency. The recently updated San Diego Natural History Museum offers five floors of exhibits, including displays on Southern California's unique wildlife, fossils and conservation. One featured exhibit showcases artwork created from plastic collected along shorelines, highlighting the impact of marine pollution. Just steps away, the Fleet Science Center has also undergone recent renovations and features hands-on science exhibits, interactive displays and activities designed for visitors of all ages. Parking can also help keep the day budget-friendly. Several free parking lots are available throughout Balboa Park, and the City of San Diego has temporarily paused parking enforcement in many areas through early next year, making it easier for visitors to enjoy the park without added expense. Free Museum Tuesdays rotate participating museums each week, giving residents the opportunity to explore many of Balboa Park's cultural attractions throughout the month. For the current schedule and additional information, visit balboapark.org . ---------- Located about 90 miles southwest of Borrego Springs, Balboa Park makes for an easy day trip, offering San Diego County residents free admission to select museums every Tuesday through the Free Museum Tuesdays program.
Free Summer Movies Continue in Borrego Springs This July
Leo Carrillo’s A Salute to Borrego Valley A Salute to Borrego Valley is a small 1960 booklet written by actor Leo Carrillo, best known as Pancho on The Cisco Kid. Carrillo was a longtime supporter of Borrego Springs, an honorary mayor and a familiar presence at local events. He also served as master of ceremonies at the 1949 dedication of the Borrego Springs Airport. The booklet notes that Carrillo wrote the verse years earlier while sharing a $1-a-day room with Will Rogers at the Summerset Hotel in New York City. In the poem, Carrillo contrasts crowded city life with the peace of Borrego Valley, celebrating its sagebrush, desert sand, open skies, mountains and wildlife.
From the Borrego Sun archives Gale Gordon was best known for his longtime work with Lucille Ball on The Lucy Show and Here’s Lucy. He also appeared in I Love Lucy, Our Miss Brooks and Dennis the Menace. Gordon later made Borrego Springs his home, living on a Tub Canyon ranch and serving as honorary mayor. This 1969 article tells how a search for land purchased by his mother led him to the desert. ------- Originally published in the Borrego Sun on June 21, 1969. HE FOUND PEACE Lost Acreage Brought Gale Gordon To Desert It’s not difficult to find a reason for moving to Borrego Springs. But for actor Gale Gordon it was even less difficult. He came to Borrego 40 years ago to find 10 lost acres his mother, English actress Gloria Gordon, had purchased for speculation, but no one knew where they were. Gale, today the honorary mayor of Borrego Springs, couldn’t find them, according to a recent article in the Los Angeles Times, and in subsequent trips he fell in love with the desert. “When I bought Tub Canyon,” he told the Times writer, Cecil Smith, “I brought an expert surveyor down to check my property lines, and while he was here I sent him to look for Mother’s land. He couldn’t find it. “Just a few years ago, a man wrote me asking me if he could have an easement for a road over Mother’s 10 acres to his property. I told him I’d give him the easement if he’d show it to me. Now, at last, I know where it is.” In the Times article, Smith wrote: “Some people are frightened by the desert. The solitude disturbs them. Across the mountains at Palm Springs there is glitter and clamor and neon dazzle where tourists and movie stars gambol. “Though show folk own great tracts of Borrego (among them Bing Crosby, Jascha Heifetz, Chuck Connors, Eddie Albert and Margo), there is here quiet, muted peace.” Gale obviously agrees, in his words: “When I get in my car to come here I can feel the tensions slacken, the muscles relax. By the time I’m here, I’m a different man and Hollywood seems light-years away. The desert is like the sea, an ever-changing thing that never changes. I guess I come here to find my soul."
