The Cove - Monterey

Artist Dennis Hare (1946 - 2024)

Date1982

MediumWatercolor on paper

Dimensions22 1/2 x 30 1/4 in. (57.2 x 76.8 cm)

ClassificationsPainting

Credit LineGift of the Hilbert Collection

Object number2019.199

DescriptionDennis Hare captures a moment of joy and youthful freedom in this painting depicting a group of young people gathered at the beach. This scene radiates warmth, relaxation and connection with the California coast—hallmarks of Hare’s early figurative work.

Born in Glendale, California, Dennis Hare initially made his mark not in art but in athletics, carving out an impressive career in college playing baseball and basketball before switching to beach volleyball. In 1971, after returning from the Army, in which he played on the All Armed Forces Volleyball Team, he took up the sport of doubles beach volleyball. It was while on tour on the beach volleyball circuit that his interest in becoming a painter was ignited. “I visited an art museum and saw a work by Vincent Van Gogh – and my life changed right there,” Hare told a reporter later.

Hare wrote and illustrated the first book ever published on his chosen sport, The Art of Beach Volleyball (1981). Mostly self-taught, but also influenced by the work of his artist grandparents, Hare began his artistic career with traditional watercolor and oil painting, working in the figural genre and often portraying sun-drenched California beach life, as seen in this vibrant canvas. He was well known for depicting people of diverse ethnic backgrounds. Bright colors, communal group scenes and coastal light were prominent in his work. They often reflected his travels to Europe, Mexico and other places. Later in his career, he tackled assemblage art, building pieces made of discarded items, junk and items showing signs of weathering.

Hare suffered from complications of Parkinson’s disease during the last nine years of his life, and although the illness robbed him of his ability to play sports or make art, he always endeavored to remain upbeat, according to his wife, Barbara. “Whenever someone would compliment him, he’d agree,” she said.

Hare held more than 60 solo shows during his 40-year art career, and his work has been displayed in galleries in Los Angeles, San Francisco and Carmel and in art museums such as the Crocker Museum, Laguna Art Museum and the Oakland Museum of Art. In 2006 he was inducted into the Southern California Beach Volleyball Hall of Fame.

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