Susan Street’s painting of homes in Lake Cochiti, New Mexico with the sun in the background is one of several featured in her new exhibit at Benicia Plein Air Gallery. (Painting by Susan Street)

Susan Street had to really step out of her comfort zone for her new show at Plein Air Gallery. For one, her paintings were not done on site but rather through using photographs of a recent trip to Cochiti Lake in New Mexico as a reference. Street had been making the trip for about 20 years to visit friends from the area, and she said the desert is not one of her favorite places to be.

“I hate the desert,” she said. “My nose bleeds and my fingers twitch.”

Additionally, Street was not happy with the hot and dry climate, the abundance of cacti and the lack of green. She would often tell her friends that she would never paint there.

However, during a trip about three or four months ago, the region received a heavy rainfall and the beauty of the area suddenly clicked for Street. The rains brought out a vast array of colors, including yellows, greens, blues and purples. This, coupled with the exceedingly long vistas, brought out the side of the New Mexico desert Street had never seen before.

“When a storm came in, the colors were just extraordinary,” she said. “I even got up for sunrise, which is also unusual for me.”

Street did not bring her easel or other paint supplies, so she took a lot of photographs.

“It was the first time I wish I had my paints with me because I wanted to paint the desert which just floored me,” she said.

As soon as Street returned home, she started painting from her photographs depicting such scenes as the lake, homes with the sun in the background, and clouds gathering right before a rainstorm. The paintings are the basis for her new show “Cochiti Lake, New Mexico,” which opens today.

Despite her initial misgivings about desert regions, Street hopes audiences can find the beauty in them.

“I want people to enjoy the fact that the desert can be beautiful,” she said. “I enjoyed the hell out of doing it, and I hope people will see that in my paintings. I really, really enjoyed doing the whole series.”

“Cochiti Lake, New Mexico” will be on display at Plein Air Gallery, located at 307 First St., through Sunday, Feb. 4. A reception will be held from 3 to 5 p.m. Saturday, Jan. 13 which will feature food, refreshments, appearances by Street’s friends and family, and music by guitarist Arif Fayed. Plein Air Gallery’s winter hours are Thursdays through Sundays, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. For more information, go to beniciapleinair.com.

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