Plein Air is a French term meaning to paint outside. There are Plein Air magazines and clubs. In Minnesota they just call their group - Outdoor Painters of Minnesota. You know exactly then what you are getting - outdoor painting.
I have painted outdoors and there are many benfits to it. You are matching your paint colors to what you actually see. You can see where the light hits and where the shadow is. I like painting outside when I can but I am a baby about it.That is why I am writing this blog. It looks romantic to see an easle set up and a painter painting along, or hear the story of somebody loading up their backpack with supplies with their easle on their back going into the remote places to paint but it is not as serene as it seems.
What I like about plein air painting - being outside. On a nice day it is a great place to be and can be relaxing. I prefer to be with somebody if it is not in my own yard - so there is friendship. I can see the accurate colors, shadows and light. A photograph does not always get those things right and you might miss the little details that are out there because they might not show up as well. It can be relaxing and sometimes at the end of your painting session you might have a painting done or mostly done so there is that sense of satisfaction. I can usually hang in there for 4 hours and then I need a break..
What I don't like about plein air painting. This is where me being a baby comes in. Being outside. I am mostly an inside girl and like inside things. There are outside things I do like - like gardening, occasionally shoveling or mowing the yard. I like to hike in a park but do not like to walk around the block. I don't like being too hot or cold. I don't like bugs, ticks and snakes. I don't like wind - trying to keep my easle up and my canvas in place. I don't like people looking over my shoulder while I work (maybe my insecurity) - ok when I am done but I will talk to everyone. Surprisingly, one of my part time jobs is working in a garden center where it can be cold or very hot. Some plein air artists are even painting outside in winter and other extremes in weather - that is just not me.
There are contests too. There are plein air painters that get together for an event with parameters of where they can paint. They have to have their cavases or paper stamped ahead of time so they know if a finished painting was substituted in. They have judging and prizes. There are also deadlines. There is a quick paint which is usually about 2 hours where you have to be in a certain area and the clock is on. It is like a race to have a painting done in that time. It then gets framed and turned in for judging. If they hold this event, there are usually prizes. I have a hard time relaxing during this time but usually get something finished.
When you look at my painting on my blog, I was painting with a group in Tiffany Bottoms. It is just outside of Durand, Wisconsin and close to the Mississippi River. It is a back water place where you need to take the "train" in. It is a train not in the usual sense but cars on rails, Usually the birders go on these trips. I took way too much that first time and have scaled back. I wore boots because of the ticks in spring but it worked out well because there may be snakes in that area but I was also able to walk in the water to check out a view. The place chose was beautiful to paint but my easle kept sinking into the sand. It is at the beginning of May, so the morning starts out with frost but by the time you leave the spot you usually have shed some of your clothes.They did leave a potty car so you didn't have to worry about bodily functions while painting. In groups, it takes me awhile to set up and relax so I can get to work
So, even with this love/hate affair, I am still planning which ones I want to do this year. They will have to be close to home because I don't want to get a hotel. I am thinking under an hour and a half away at most. If I did one that I could camp at I don't know if I would have enough room in my car for both camping and painting stuff unless I cut back on both. This Spring, there are two of them that are the closest. I will need to juggle my schedule. I substitute teach and school will still be in, I will have started my greenhouse job and we have a baby due in the family. You do what you can.
Maybe this year I can relax and do my best work ever!
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