Building a Better Hibbard Mitt
Wisconsin painter Lynn M. Rix was highly motivated to improve upon the Aldro Hibbard painting mitt she read about last year. "I have had...
Facebook Live Series: John MacDonald “Creating Dynamic Landscapes” **FREE VIDEO LESSONS**
Imagine a beach scene that is painted so well, you can actually feel the warmth of the sun. This is exactly the kind of landscape paintings John MacDonald will help you create.
Do You Paint What You Love, or What You Think Will Sell?
This dilemma seems to plague all artists at one time or another. Painting from the heart, or painting what sells? Is it possible to do both?
Where Will the Sun Come Up?
The answer to the question is undoubtedly the East, but where in relation to the place you are standing, and exactly when will it...
Why This Works: Simple in Design, Complex in Execution
In this series, plein air painter and instructor Jeanne Mackenzie takes a look at new paintings by contemporary artists and points out why they...
When “Paint What You See” Doesn’t Work
If we only paint observationally and we rely on our visual perceptions, we are often wrong in our drawing and our values. Here’s why.
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.
How to Paint Beaches: Nail the Illusion of Distance, Light, and Atmosphere
The key to an effective plein air beach scene is to keep it simple — and that goes for your equipment, your palette, and your subject.
Painting on Shellacked Paper
A case of mistaken identity has Richard Gallego painting on watercolor paper that's been coated with shellac. He likes the results. ...
Why This Works: Intense Sun in a Relatively Low Key
- Jeanne Mackenzie reporting -
In this series, plein air painter and instructor Jeanne Mackenzie takes a look at new paintings by contemporary artists and...
Surreal Clouds, Civil War-Era Barns, and Posterity
- Bob Bahr reporting, Editor PleinAir Today -
Do you feel like you are capturing a disappearing world when you paint en plein air? Craig...
One Never Tires of Glacier National Park
- Kathleen B. Hudson reporting -
If it’s not already on there, you might want to add Glacier National Park to your bucket list of...
Accepting the Challenge of Painting Skies
Tomas Honz has an impressive body of work focusing on various sky conditions. It was not done without a fair amount of adversity.
What the Rocks Tell Us: Artist/Geologists in the American West
In this series of articles, Utah artist J. Brad Holt talks about what artists are seeing as they look at the landscape. Holt studied...
Painting Nocturnes
It's not unusual for Maryland artist Hiu Lai Chong to spend a total of eight hours developing one of her plein air paintings, either...
Anatomy of an Award Winner: Patrick Saunders
- Bob Bahr reporting, Editor PleinAir Today -
A number of factors contributed to how relaxed and loose Patrick Saunders was when he painted an...
Use Pastels to Define and Suggest Responses to Nature
New Mexico artist Albert Handell uses pastels to respond both to the specifics of what he observes and to his emotional response: “I will eventually frame the painting, not the location I observe, so the image has to be more than an exact replica of the landscape.”
The Value of Art Retreats
Artists are used to taking workshops, which of course are great ways to learn. But what about events that are all painting, in a beautiful place with no workshop? It's trending - see why...
10 Surprising Tricks for Painting en Plein Air
You might think you know all the tricks to the trade when it comes to painting en plein air, but these four artists have some witty ideas for making it an even better experience.
Parting Shot: Paint Like the Wind!
New York City painter Thor Wickstrom was recently painting autumn in New York, and thinking about the wind, which was rearranging his view by...