Carmel-by-the-Sea Carmel Artists - Delia Bradford

A painter for more than 37 years, Bradford can also be spotted outside her gallery, where she'll be painting or gathering images on her phone for her next project. "In the morning time, I'm usually out painting at the beach," she says.

The artist grew up on Big Sur's Partington Ridge without TV or other distractions. "Our environment was very creative, because we were in the outdoors," Bradford says.

Bradford opened her Carmel-by-the-Sea gallery in May 2016. The interior is decorated with paintings depicting Carmel's missions, local mountainsides blushing with wildflowers, and ocean scenes. The artist notes that her style has become subtler over the years. "I'm learning to simplify, because the viewer can fill in the blanks," Bradford says.

She says that she loves being in Carmel because of the quiet small town and "the weather is so perfect for painting plein-air." In addition, Bradford believes the village is a great place to be a working artist. "People support my art here," she says. "People support my paint habit. I use a lot of paint."