Plein Air - What's The Verdict?

Does plein air painting live up to it's reputation as being simultaneously
challenging yet romantic? Yep. That's the conclusion we reached at our
workshop in Alta, Utah on Saturday, July 20.

We were bathed in sunlight, surrounded by late
Spring flowers and refreshed by a cool mountain
breeze. What's not to like?

Well, for me it was the annoyance of buzzing
black  flies. But once I turned my focus to
painting, the flies were easy to overlook.

We set up our easels, selected individual views then began painting
preliminary value studies with black, white and gray paint.

Here is Cory's value study.

This is Jean's value study.

Here is David's value study.

Cory begins his work.

Blocking in the chunks of local color.

A great beginning block-in with oil paint.

David laying in his initial black and white values.

David is nearly finished with his full-color painting of Devil's Castle.

David's finished painting is rendered in acrylic.

Diana, working in watercolor, blocks in her value study.

Diana's watercolor is not quite finished and yet she has
successfully captured the energy of the scene.

Jean swats flies with one hand and paints with the other.

Here is Jeans finished oil painting.

Susie starts laying in a composition.

Her view of Devil's Castle.

Susie's finished oil painting.

Having to work quickly enough to capture the essence of a scene
and at the same time create a painting that is worthy of praise, is no
easy task, and yet each artist at the workshop went home with a
feeling of accomplishment and a successful painting in their hand.

The verdict is in: Plein air painting is worth the effort!