The wind is blowing causing the canvas to shake on the easel, and the dirt being lifted into the air is deposited into the wet paint.  The weather is not optimal, however, the light is.  The shadows are cast and the highlights are bright and reflective.  Brush strokes are placed and the composition is perfected through the mixture of oil paints on a messy, but organized canvas.  Alla prima is an Italian term that describes an artistic method that involves capturing what the eye sees on the spot, and in the moment.  Geoff Parker has employed this approach during the entirety of his career. 

Geoff was born in Cody, Wyoming in 1951, which is where he developed a deep appreciation for his environment that would become his inspiration.  In his early teens, he and his family moved to Spokane, Washington where he graduated high school.  Following his graduation Geoff followed a sort of vagabond lifestyle picking up odd jobs, moving more and more southwest until he landed in San Francisco, California.  Following his dream and passion, Geoff enrolled into the San Francisco Academy of Art and began to refine his talent.  After his graduation, came the hardships involved in any beginning art career.  He was in fact a starving artist.  After a series of moves and various employments (commercial fisherman, cowhand, deep sea diver, and sous chef) Geoff and his wife found themselves back in Cody, Wyoming where they started a family and raised three girls and nurtured a growing art career. 

With an expanding patronage in both national and international circles, Geoff has been given the opportunity to paint the globe. He has facilitated exhibitions showcasing his paintings of the Grand Canyon, the history of Lewis and Clark, the picturesque scenes of Morocco,and Spain all the way to the tropics of Costa Rica. 

These works are a culmination of artistic expression rather than social aggrandizement.  It features a true representation of the artist’s interpretation of what he sees.  This culmination is a starting point of a new artistic journey for the artist, leading into additional alla prima exhibitions.