PleinAir Magazine October/November 2020

A student of the sky, John Constable (British, 1776-1837) felt that a thorough understanding of the formation of clouds, their influence on the quality of light, and their contribution to atmospheric effects would give his landscapes greater truth. In the early 1820s, he lived in Hampstead, a village situated just north of London on an open, hilly heathland that gave him the perfect vantage point to study the sky and its ever-changing effects. It was during his residence there that he made many oil sketches of the sky, working on paper en plein air. He referred to the exercise as “skying,” often annotating the studies with the date, time of day, wind direction, and scientific description of the cloud formation depicted. Typical of his Hampstead sky sketches, Cloud Study: Stormy Sunset…

Like you, I was horrified. Though we all wanted to cooperate and “flatten the curve,” the continual extending of the need to stay at home played havoc with businesses around the world. Sadly, the plein air community was not immune. Organizations, museums, galleries, artists, art fairs, and others who had spent a year or more planning had to postpone or scuttle popular events. And suddenly all these people were left with a giant gap in their income, their donations, and their visibility. Frankly, I was worried. My own business is dependent on these shows, on these organizations, galleries, and artists. Our own big events, like the Plein Air Convention & Expo, were postponed, rescheduled, then cancelled. In fact, we’ve been unable to hold any of the six live events we had planned…

While the pandemic has put the brakes on many aspects of our lives, art goes on. Forced to close at various times to the public, museums now offer free virtual tours of permanent collections and special exhibits. Plein air event organizers are pivoting quickly to move some components — if not all — of their festivities online. This year, even our own Plein Air Convention & Expo became a virtual event, PleinAir Live. An unexpected upshot was that many of these exhibits and events drew greater audiences from all around the world — people who would never have had the opportunity to participate before. It will be interesting to see how this revelation might influence aspects of art events going forward. In this issue, our reporting on those plein air events…

An endless source of inspiration for poets, painters, and romantics of all stripes, sunrises and sunsets have known positive psychological effects on observers. To capture these fleeting moments of color and drama, plein air painters must work quickly and home in succinctly on the stories they want to tell. The 17 paintings showcased here provide a welcome excuse to hit the pause button on our day and relish the sun’s glorious effects as it rises or descends over the landscape.…

The dog has to go out, laundry needs folding, a family member calls, and in no time you’re on social media scrolling through a friend’s photos. No matter your good intentions, the comfort of routine distractions can get in the way of painting, and before you know it, a plan to begin your painting day at 7 a.m. can turn easily into a 2 p.m. start. To break that routine, I like to paint in new or unusual places, meeting my muse openly and allowing creativity to flow. I’ve found that some of my best paintings come from plein air events or outings with friends when I connect with Mother Nature. I tell students to check their brains at the door, to listen to what is inside. I believe in learning…

Surface: I bought a big linen canvas roll that I cut into several 11 x 14-inch pieces and a few 16 x 20-inch pieces, as well as some even larger, which I cut to size while I was there. The sheets were lightweight and didn’t take up much room. I attached them with painter’s tape to boards I brought with me as well. Brushes: Rosemary and Co flats — Nos. 4, 8, and 12 Paints: Nine large tubes of Michael Harding Paints — ultramarine, King’s blue, yellow ochre, cadmium yellow, cadmium red, magenta, phthalo green, white, and unbleached titanium Misc.: Prolific Painter Daytripper easel, Proline Dolica tripod, 11 x 14-inch PanelPak wet paint carriers, and an RGM Italian palette knife. I carried my art supplies in a small Kelty Redwing 32 backpack. As…