MAPAPA Exhibit in Annapolis ~ Potomac Artworks

1.07.2010

MAPAPA Exhibit in Annapolis

Please join the Mid-Atlantic Plein Air Painter's Association at their exhibit hosted by Quiet Waters Gallery in Annapolis, Maryland. You will be awed by the talent, as I always am. The show opens January 7 and runs through February 14.

The opening reception will be January 10 from 2-4PM.

Quiet Waters Gallery is located at 600 Quiet Waters Park Road in Annapolis.

If you're not a member of MAPAPA, consider joining. The annual meeting on January 30 at Londontowne near Annapolis. It will be a full day of plein air painting and sessions not to be missed, to include a demo and lecture by Louis Escobedo and American Impressionism by Willford Scott.

Pictured, right and included in the Quiet Waters show, is Genteel Winter, a pastel painted en plein air near Ashland, Virginia.

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The Charm of en Plein Air

Much of my work is done en plein air, French for "in the open air." People often associate it with the Impressionists, but the move to paint outside preceded them by a number of decades. The trend to appreciate landscapes as a genre at all was new for the time.

Several characteristics contribute to the distinctive beauty of en plein air painting. They are generally smaller in size in order to be able to capture a scene in a single sitting. Because of the time limit and environmental factors such as the sun and shadows moving, they often lack extensive details and might appear slightly fuzzy or unfinished. Lastly, they tend to have a freshness and spontaneity which makes them impossible to compare to traditional and methodological studio work. That said, my own studio work tends toward the same feel as en plein air, which then identifies my overall style: softness with an edge.

My aim when painting en plein air is for alla prima paintings, which roughly translates for me as "what happens outside, stays outside." It adds another level of difficulty to the work.

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1.07.2010