In the late 1930s Blair bought a ranch in San Diego County where he raised thoroughbred horses, cows, and pigs. During World War II one of his prizewinning stallions, El Ganito, was used to guard the mountainous area near San Diego. Meadow Lark, a farm about thirty miles from San Diego, was the first night’s destination on the guard’s circuit. Blair explained that "being interested in the spot where our horse spent the night, we made trips to the place, and being intrigued with its unusual character and beauty, the painting was the result." Life on the farm is rendered with all the ideal, pleasant activities typical of this naïve artist’s work: a man fishes in a stream while cows graze nearby and a dog chases a rabbit.
In such early work Blair painted with pure color but faithfully rendered what he saw: bright green grassy fields subdivided by a meandering white picket fence and dotted with houses and barns with red and black roofs. Although the absence of atmospheric perspective is typical of primitive artists, Blair’s handling of the composition, particularly the manner in which the delicate trees frame the flat image, is sophisticated.
Ozzie and Harriet Nelson, who donated the painting to the museum, were among the many actors who collected Blair’s art. Not only did his paintings decorate their house and office, one of his early works was used in the livingroom set of their popular television series.
