category_outlined / Art & Architecture
PleinAir Magazine April/May 2019
Get PleinAir Magazine digital magazine subscription today and follow tens-of-thousands of artists and collectors who have joined a new plein air movement. Rooted in deep history each quarterly issue, edited by Cherie Haas, chronicles today’s master artists, their techniques, events and the collectors who follow them as well as the historic artists who came before them.
IN THIS ISSUE
plein air heritage
Having spent most of his life in Paris and London, American-born James McNeill Whistler (1834–1903) drew inspiration from a host of artistic influences, including the Dutch masters, Spanish Baroque, French contemporary Realists, Japanese decorative art, and the Pre-Raphaelites, to develop his unique painting style. Rejecting the popular notion that art should contain moral or historical meaning, he focused instead on creating harmony and effecting mood through the use of color, tone, brush-stroke, texture, and composition. Painted en plein air, this intimately scaled seascape marked a distinct shift from the artist’s studio-produced nocturnes of the previous decade. Here he used the sparest of compositional elements to evoke the serene coastal atmosphere on the spot. Broad horizontal bands of blues and gray suggest sky, ocean, and sand, with dabs of thin paint giving…
pleinair magazine
PUBLISHER B. Eric Rhoads • bericrhoads@gmail.com Twitter: @ericrhoads • Facebook: /ericrhoads ASSOCIATE PUBLISHER Scott Jones • sjones@streamlinepublishing.com EDITOR-IN-CHIEF Kelly Kane • kkane@streamlinepublishing.com MANAGING EDITOR Brida Connolly • bconnolly@streamlinepublishing.com • 702.299.0417 CREATIVE DIRECTOR Alfonso Jones • alfonso.streamline@gmail.com • 561.655.8778 ART DIRECTOR Kenneth Whitney • kenneth.whitney@gmail.com EDITOR EMERITUS M. Stephen Doherty DIRECTOR OF SALES Jason Kelley • jkelley@streamlinepublishing.com • 802.579.1058 NATIONAL SALES MANAGER, SUPPLIERS Richard Lindenberg • richlindenberg@gmail.com • 415.948.6142 NATIONAL MARKETING MANAGER Yvonne Van Wechel • yvonnevanwechel@gmail.com • 602.810.3518 REGIONAL MARKETING MANAGERS Krystal Allen West Coast krystalallen2@gmail.com 541.447.4787 Scott Jones Mountain West sjones@streamlinepublishing.com 406.871.0649 Tracey Norvell Mid-Atlantic & Southeast tenwriter@gmail.com 918.519.0141 Gina Ward Central gwardart@gmail.com 920.743.2405 Mary Green Northeast & International mgreen@streamlinepublishing.com 508.230.9928 DIGITAL AD MANAGER Sarah Webb • swebb@streamlinepublishing.com • 630.445.9182 Plein Air Today Cherie Haas, Editor chaas@streamlinepublishing.com WEBSITES PleinAirMagazine.com • OutdoorPainter.com for artists PleinAirCollector.com for collectors ADVISORY BOARD Museum & Organization Officers Peter Adams, President, California Art Club (www.americanlegacyfinearts.com/artists/peter-adams/) Sandy Askey Adams, En Plein Air Group, Facebook (www.sandyaskeyadams.com) Antony Bridge, Pochade.Co.UK (www.antonybridge.co.uk) Christopher Forbes, Vice Chairman,…
how to live longer
Art history books are filled with stories of artists who were on a never-ending quest to improve their craft, learn new approaches, and experiment with fresh ideas. Materials have changed over time, and new colors have emerged, all of which have opened the doors to new ideas. There are numerous accounts of collaborations with other artists, of conversations in cafes, of artists mentoring other artists, and painters getting together in small groups to share ideas. Most did this far into their later years. The magic of painting is that it can have an impact on your longevity. An elastic and growing brain that is continually challenged is a brain that has a reason not to shut down the organs and send the body into dying mode. History holds many examples of…
better together
Looking back, I had no idea what I was getting into at my first Plein Air Convention & Expo (PACE). The fun, energy, and excitement generated by a group that size, all engaged in a shared passion, is impossible to imagine; you just have to experience it. More than the thrill, however, the camaraderie between the participants — faculty and attendees alike — provided some of the most memorable moments for me. I saw people help one another find their way around the convention space; offer rides to paint-out locations; and share materials, time, and advice as they engaged in their collective endeavors. But surprisingly, it didn’t end there. The sense of support and fellowship fostered at the convention extended well beyond the last day of activities via social media. For many…
keeping it real
Boasting awe-inspiring redwood forests, vineyards set amid rolling hills, and a dramatic Pacific coastline, Northern California has been the backdrop for a number of significant art movements. With all that spectacular natural scenery, it’s no wonder that two of the most popular movements have been rooted in the land, often offering a direct counterpoint to those in other parts of the country that favored a more abstract approach. Chief among these movements, California Impressionism sprung up as artists in the Golden State embraced their French predecessors’ interest in loose brushwork, rich color, and, most of all, a fascination with the effects of sunlight. And what better way to capture the distinctive California glow than by also painting en plein air, a defining feature of 20th-century California painting. For Irvine Museum director Jean…
insider tips from local artists
The light and weather conditions can change fast, so it’s important to capture a moment fairly quickly. You also have to be aware of the late afternoon west wind. In artists’ circles here, there are many stories of tripods and canvases blowing away. — Michael Reardon San Francisco has lots of tourists, especially from foreign countries. Be prepared for getting your picture snapped and fielding questions from interested visitors if you set up in a popular location. — Julia Munger Seelos If I’m painting along a road, I use James Gurney’s trick of bringing my own orange traffic cones to alert drivers that there’s an artist ahead. A fun observation is that orange is also the color of California poppies, our state flower! — Carolyn Lord No matter what time of year, it’s…
