November 1st, 2009
Plein Air Painting - Why would you do it?
The Immediacy, The Challenge, and the Reward
Painting on site instills in your mind all the feelings about the particular location.....the tme of day, the smells in the air, the temperature, the sounds, the feel of the breeze on your skin, and many other subtleties.
The biggest challenge is learning to deal with the environment. The light changes quickly, so you have to work within a time limit. You also have to consider the weight of your supplies, if you'r hiking, weather conditions, insects, wild animals and humans.
Some of my pieces actually contain some of the environment that I was working in....bits of stuff in the air, beach sand, and, in one case at least, the remains of a swarm of midges that flew smack into my painting. ( That was the day I decided to carry tweezers in my box.)
The reward for facing and overcoming these challenges, is a certain freshness to the work, and the "better than photograph" reminder of the places you've been, and what drew you to paint them in the first place.
Warm regards,
Deb
above image: Plein Air Painting by Deb Grisé - "Bala" 5x4 inch oil on birch panel