Although the Nutley Public Library’s Plein Air Paint-Out just concluded its first event ever, its existence is simply another sign of how quickly outdoor painting is growing.
On April 29 in Nutley, New Jersey’s first ever Plein Air Paint-Out was a resounding success at the city’s Kingsand Park. It was the brainchild of three members of the Friends of the Nutley Public Library — Deborah Dotoli, Kathryn Karpousis, and Kathleen Mankowich — and a total of 17 regional painters attended during what was called a “Monet perfect” day.
“It was time to do something different,” remarks Barbara Hirsch, president of Friends of the Nutley Public Library. “These three young women come up with the idea and ran with it.” The organizers of the event hope to host it every year while adding new attendees from further areas. Even the town’s mayor, Dr. Joseph Scarpelli, attended the event, saying, “The thing I like most about our park system is that it creates a greenway in town that stretches from one end of town all the way to the other. Today, I had a chance to walk through the park and observe some of the artists, and it was really lovely. Artists are very important in Nutley. At one point, we had more artists living in Nutley than any other town in the state. Montclair would probably argue with that (laughs).”
Among the artists who participated in the first-ever paint-out were Sue Barrasi, Rosanne Cerbo, Connie Dierks, Raul Flores, Carol Fortunato, Jose Galioto, Elissa Gore, Ed Horvath, Pat Proniewski, Lisa and Nancy Quatrocchi, Jane Ramsey, Pratima Rao, Marilyn Rose, Susan Sapanara, Yelena Snovsky, and Concetta Volpe.
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