Go Small & 4 Other Quick Tips
Using a plein air setup on a photography tripod, Clare Bowen gave an oil demonstration at Plein Air Live 2023 while ...
My Biggest Stumbling Block as a Plein Air Painter
A quick tip to help you discover the transformative strategy that will elevate your plein air painting - learn from over 40 years of experience to create more ...
Marc Hanson: Why I Love Acrylic for Plein Air Painting
I jokingly tell my workshop students that the main reason I like using acrylic en plein air is that I can drink the solvent — water! My second favorite reason is ...
Tertiary, Monochromatic, and Analogous Colors
Because I’ve been painting so long, I use color intuitively. I just “feel” my color. I choose colors automatically and know which ones harmonize or contrast with each other depending on the effect I want. I have long since stored by paint-splattered color wheel deep in a drawer in my studio, ignoring the wealth of information hidden within it. I’m sure I learned all there was to know about color in high school or college, so what is the point?
6 Reasons Field Studies Are Priceless
From illustrator to fine art painter since 1982, John Pototschnik shares his advice on the importance of field studies, which he says have “a value greater than any monetary reward.”
What Is Color Temperature?
Learn how warming up or cooling down areas of your painting can provide unity and balance in your work. Bonus: Includes a step-by-step demo!
Q&A: How to Use Water-Mixable Oils
In this excerpt from Plein Air Magazine, Lori McNee ("Luminous Landscape Painting" on PaintTube.TV) answers four reader questions about how to use water-mixable oils.
Free Mini-Lesson: Can You Use a Putty Knife for Painting?
Watch as Douglas Fryer shows you how to use an unconventional tool for painting, including how he "triple loads" it with color.
Watercolor Paper – An Overview for Beginners
Learn about the three basic surfaces of watercolor paper, and why you might choose one over the others.
Deciding When the Time is Right
From initial iPad sketches to refining the final composition, follow along as Kimball Geisler navigates creative challenges, balances colors, and brings his vision to life on canvas in this step-by-step painting demonstration.
Drawing and Painting … at the Same Time
On Making the Switch From Watercolor to Pastel Painting > Jill Stefani Wagner, who is on the faculty of the 2026 Plein Air Convention ...
PleinAir Tip: Sketch Quickly
When painting outdoors, it is important that you capture this piece first.
What Is Gouache?
In this free article, learn if gouache can be used like watercolor, how the two are similar, and what makes gouache unique.
How to Paint with a Palette Knife – Watch Free
Join art publisher Eric Rhoads on this episode of Art School Live, featuring American artist Ken Wilson!
2 Quick Tips: No-Frills Advice for Landscape Painters
"You will learn far more from your failures than you will from your successes. You will always remember ..."
Can Altoids Help You Paint Better?
Plein air painting can get to be a mental endurance test, so here are some tips to keep concentration high.
An Aha Moment, Every Time
Preview expert presentations from Natasha Isenhour, Roos Schuring, Tim Horn, John Budicin, Shuang Li, and even Don Demers at Plein Air Live, Day 2.
Free Video Demo: How to Make Gouache Glow
In this free Art School Live demo, Danny Folkman demonstrates how the careful preservation of transparent layers ...
Art Snippet: Why I Love to Layer
I view the world in shapes and color notes — not objects, and this is how I approach my paintings as well. In general, I begin a painting by ...
People . . . Who Paint People en Plein Air
Kathryn A. McMahon is not one of those plein air painters who are bothered by passersby. She puts them into her paintings, and chats with them. How?