We received an engaging story by email recently from Lynne Baur, who is an artist, instructor and creativity coach who lives in Wisconsin. She straps her Guerrilla Box on the passenger seat of her motorcycle, using extra D-Rings to make it secure. As she travels the rural roads, she can pull over whenever she sees an intriguing scene, since it’s easier to park a motorcycle than a car. Then she can quickly open the box and start painting.

“Plein air season is FINALLY here in Wisconsin. Just a little over a week ago, we had 8 inches of snow, and there was frost last night, but the roads are clear at last, so I had a chance to get out and do a little plein air painting this morning with my new super-cool field easel. As usual for the first excursion of the season, the painting itself is icky, so you don’t get to see a close-up! But, it’s okay. The point of sketching in the field, for me, is to force myself to be fully present and take in the scene with an artist’s eye and heart. When I look at my crappy little field sketches later, the whole experience comes flooding back—how the light fell, the colors, the feel of the warm sun and cool wind on my face, how I was feeling that day—and that is what goes into a good studio painting, not getting the placement of every little shrub just right.”

She uses watermedia on paper and also on silk.

A three-day plein air workshop with watercolorist John Hewitt is scheduled June 1 through 3 at Coos Art Museum in Coos Bay, Oregon.

“I have been a student of the greatest watercolorists of the 20th century. My goal is to pass on this legacy to the 21st century,” Hewitt said. “Come join us and have a great time becoming a successful plein air artist. You will receive encouragement, not criticism.”

The workshop page at his website includes five additional workshops, along with the Mendocino paint out September 9-14 and a trip to Italy next year.

“A painting must be constructed from a scene, not copied from a scene, to create the most compelling works of art.”

Plein Air Festivals have become a popular sport, not just for participating (often world class) artists but also for collectors and spectators. They can also benefit a region by calling attention to historic districts, vanishing landscapes, local art associations and other nonprofit organizations. Often there is music, food and other events that add to the festivities. Here is a list of upcoming festivals, in roughly chronological order:

Florida’s Forgotten Coast May 2-12 pleinairfl.com
Wayne, Pennsylvania May 6-10 waynepleinair.com
Carmel, California May 16-19 carmelartfestival.org
Council Bluffs, Iowa May 18 – 19 bluffsarts.org
Paso Robles, California May 25 prcity.com/fota/
Canandaigua, New York June 6-9 canandaiguaarts.com
Ogden, Utah June 7 – 8 ogdenartsfestival.com
Gettysburg, Pennsylvania June 8-16 gettysburgfestival.org
Cedarburg, Wisconsin June 12 – 23 pleinaircedarburg.blogspot.com
San Clemente, California June 15 – 23 paintsanclemente.com
Los Gatos, California June 18-21 lgpleinair.org
Richmond, Virginia June 10-15 pleinairrichmond.com
Frederick, Maryland June 21-22 easelsinfrederick.org
Temecula, California June 21 – 23 cityoftemecula.org
Annapolis, Maryland June 26 – 28 visitannapolis.org
Telluride, Colorado June 28-July 4 and Aspen, Colorado July 7-13 telluridepleinair.com
Red Wing, Minnesota June 24-29 redwingartsassociation.org
Ellicott City, Maryland July 11 – 15 visithowardcounty.com
Easton, Maryland July 15-21 pleinaireaston.com
Door County, Wisconsin July 22-27 doorcountypleinair.com
Richfield, Wisconsin July 27 richfieldhistoricalsociety.org
Castine, Maine July 27 castinearts.org
Driggs, Idaho July 24 – August 3 driggspleinair.org
Wexford, Ireland July 29 – August 6 artintheopen.org
Ocean City, Maryland August 8 – 10 artleagueofoceancity.org
Estes Park, Colorado August 10 – 22 estesarts.com
Dexter, Michigan August 13 – 17 dextermi.gov/arts
Milwaukee, Wisconsin August 16 – 18 milwaukeedomesartfestival.com
Bennington, Vermont September 3 – 8 pleinair-vermont.com
Mendocino, California September 9 – 14 mendocinoartcenter.org
Solomons, Maryland September 18 – 21 solomonsmaryland.com
IPAP Worldwide Paint Out, September 13 – 15 ipap.homestead.com
Holmdel, New Jersey, September 22 bayonetfarmarts.org
Escalante Canyon, Utah September 27-28 everettruessdays.org
Sonoma, California September 16 – 21 sonomapleinair.com
Sedona, Arizona October 19 – 26 sedonapleinairfestival.com

Congratulations to Janis Krendick, who called today to redeem the gift certificate she won recently at the Outdoor Painters Society annual paint out known as Plein Air Southwest Salon. She does primarily pastel, but also works in oils, using vibrant color and intriguing compositions.
“I love being outdoors, absorbing nature. It inspires me. My quest is to capture on paper or canvas the essence of what I am experiencing. So, why do I do it? I do not know of any other way to express myself that gives me so much joy.

“My interest in art goes back to childhood, and I have worked in a number of media over the years. I have taken several workshops from various artists including Bill Gallen, Ann Templeton, Doug Dawson, Ned Mueller, Lorenzo Chavez, Bob Rohm, Bill Hosner and Richard McKinley.

“The landscape is my focus, and my personal challenge is to interpret it in a sensitive manner. An ongoing endeavor!”

Heather Arenas, shown here painting plein air at the zoo, has been painting her whole life, but originally her goal was to become an orthopedic surgeon. She changed her mind when it became clear that she would never be able to continue painting if she followed that career path.

“When I left school, I tried many different careers including veterinary technician, database architect and alpaca rancher and continued drawing and painting tributes to my experiences. Ultimately it didn’t matter what I did to pay the bills, I still found time to paint.
Although I have painted many different subjects, I particularly love figure painting. Anatomy is still my favorite subject.”

In addition to figures, she also paints still lifes, animals and landscapes. One of her goals is to say more with a painting than can be said with a photograph, and she accomplishes this by using bright colors, interesting brush strokes, uncommon compositions and strong contrast.

“To reveal the beauty and drama found in everyday scenes, I paint many different subjects from life. My works are fresh and full of colors that I see that may not be seen by the typical viewer.”

Her blog has not just images of her paintings, but also her thoughts and experiences, as well as guest posts and news about her line of high-quality frames.