The Studio

The painting that I am posting today is one that I started while at the cabin this past weekend.  It was a beautiful weekend for plein-air painting.  I am often asked just what that means. 

En plein air is a French expression which means “in the open air”, and is particularly used to describe the act of painting outdoors.  Painting in “natural” light became very popular in the mid 19th Century and was made increasingly famous by the works of Monet, Cezanne, Renoir, Pissaro.  One invention led to the popularity of plein-air painting and that was the introduction of paint in tubes making it much easier to carry supplies. 

I love working outdoors and painting on location.  It is fun to find a great subject and to set up the french easel and paint in much the same way the impressionists did in the mid 1800’s.  Of course, they didn’t have a Ford Explorer and bug spray!  There are a few hazards to overcome.  One of the worst is trying to keep Truman and Jed from finding all the dead animals laying where ever we end up.  If  its been there a while then they will find it.  Yuck!

I begin the painting on location and often take a photo and finish in the studio.  This was where we set up for the day.

And here is Jed after a hard day of work!  What a boy!!!