A dude ranch becomes an artist’s retreat

A special place for artists

Two years ago, we began to think about creating a special place for artists … a Studio of the South.  What better venue than Rancho La Bellota, the beautiful 2,800 acre horse and cattle ranch that we’ve enjoyed visiting for many years?  Truly “of the South”, the ranch is located 50 miles south of the U.S./Tecate border, very close to Mexico’s famous wine country.  Since it was originally designed as a dude ranch, we knew the hospitality was already in place; all we needed to do was invite the artists!

We began by asking artists to join us for 3-day weekends, sharing painting techniques and photography tricks.  As the dream is unfolding, this year we will bring ceramic artists and printmakers into the creative mix.  Painters and photographers tend to work outside, but printers and potters often need indoor spaces, and of course, printing presses and kilns are required.

We needed a barn …

Raul is building a barn! Here is a photo, taken last December, of Rancho La Bellota’s new 3,000 square foot barn under construction.

It’s almost finished now, and will be the site of our first Printmaker’s Studio, March 12 – 15, lead by Carol Catalano Webb, an amazing San Diego printmaker.  Approximately 600 square feet of the barn will be devoted to printmaking, and we are preparing the site with a press, drying racks, a sink, a huge work table, and storage.  In other words, everything an artist would want to create beautiful, multi-layered intaglio prints.  Using foam, Plexiglas, or linoleum, artists will find boundless inspiration in the ranch setting – the natural landscape, traditional architecture, vineyards, giant agaves, livestock, vintage equipment, and of course, the horses which free range on the 2,800 acre property.

Baja Rancho Art would like to invite you to explore a fresh venue in 2015. Please visit our Upcoming Events page for what’s new. We’ll see you at the Ranch!