Augusta Plein Air was a BLAST

What more can I say about the fabulous Augusta Plein Air event in Augusta, MO.  The hospitality is super, the location is BEAUTIFUL, the art work is so INSPIRING, and every artist has a BLAST!  Wine flows, great food, $500 purchase award EVERY DAY...the list goes on and on.  So I will post some yummy photos for your pleasure.  We had every kind of weather you can imagine for May.  Rain, snow, sun and wind.  It was simply PLEIN AIR at it's best!   Just to tease you for next years event, here are some photos!

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LUNCH WAS DELIVERED in a creek!!

Tammie Dickerson wins honorable mention at the Private Estate Paint Out.  

Niles Gordon wins honorable mention at the private estate paint out.

The $500 purchase award goes to Susan!  What a great pastel.

Kathy Kessler holding Susan's pastel

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Theme painting for 'Aged to Perfection'.  

Marty painted my Airstream for Aged to Perfection!  She is too, a 1962 Safari Airstream.

This was a great piece by Kim.  Look at that cool frame to ice that cake.

One of the events hosted by Stone Antiques, for the Aged to Perfection event.

Typical artists vehicle.  FULL to the brim with supplies, frames, etc.

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Zak Barnes was one of the judges for this event at Klondike Park.  Greg Summer won the $500 purchase award!  

The Symphony Dinner, the final evening.  It was superb.

Susans' pastel, a winner.

Lorraine won a ribbon in pastel.

And two of our hostesses, Kathy and Robin, watching the video of the event.  They deserve a round of applause folks!

A quote

A quote from Jean-Baptiste-Camille Corot-
“The first two things to study are first form and then values. Those two things are in my opinion the foundations of art. Color and execution add charm to the work. It seemed very serious to me to prepare a study or a painting by starting to indicate the most vigorous color values (assuming the canvas is white) and to continue by following in order until you reach the lightest value. I would give 20 gradual numbers to go from the lightest to the most vigorous color value. Then your painting or study would be established with order. This order must in no way bother the sketcher or the colorist. Always the mass, the whole, what struck us. Never lose the first impression that moved us. The sketch is then the first thing to look for. And then, color values - the relation between forms and values. Those are the foundations. After the color, finally, the execution. Do you want to do a study or a painting? First you must apply yourself to look for the form in conscience. After having made all the efforts of application, move on to values. Look for them with the mass. Conscience. A good way to achieve this: if your canvas is white, start with the most vigorous tone. Follow the order until you get to the lightest tone. "

The Joy of Facebook

I enjoy Facebook.  I probably spend too much time on it.  Today Debra Joy Groesser, whose work I love and admire, posted this.  Of course it was from Marc Hanson....another artist admire and enjoy.  And this is why Facebook has it's time and place.  On the positive side, so much good is shared.  

Debra Joy Groesser

Shared from my good friend and wonderful artist, Marc Hanson...thanks Marc :)

This is a reasonably thought out statement about Beauty and Art. He was a wise man...

"Through our sense of vision we can get an impression from a picture which no sound on earth can transmit. And so with poetry or prose; each art speaks in it's own language, and cannot properly be translated one into another. Although each is equally beautiful the basis is not Beauty - Beauty is certainly not Art - Art is the expression of the Senses through the imagination, and the basis is truth" - EDWARD SEAGO

Gamblin....a wild story about Torrit Grey

Torrit Grey Competition


If you took all the pigments in the color spectrum and mixed them together, what color would you make?

Every spring, Gamblin Artists Colors collects a wealth of pigments from our Torit® Air Filtration system. We filter the air around the areas where we handle dry pigments so that our workers are not exposed to pigment dust. Rather than sending any of our high quality, expensive pigments into the landfill, Gamblin paint makers recycle them into "Gamblin Torrit Grey".

"Pigment dust should not go into the earth, water or landfill, but into paint," says Robert Gamblin.

The mix of pigments is different every year, so Torrit Grey is always unique and will never be repeated. Torrit Grey tends to have a greenish tinge because of the great strength of the Phthalo Green pigment, which is a dark bluish green. Torrit Grey varies from a medium dove grey to a dark earthy grey.

We are now dating the tubes, so artists can collect them from year to year and enjoy the unique qualities of each edition. Whatever you create with these popular limited edition colors is solely up to you and your imagination.

Our Torrit Grey store promotion, which runs each year through the end of April in celebration of Earth Day, not only recycles pigment dust into paint but focuses artists on the importance of recycling, studio and environmental safety. Complimentary 37ml tubes of Torrit Grey are only available while supplies last through your local fine art materials retailer. Last year, we distributed more than 11,000 tubes of Torrit Grey! Limitations are often your greatest creative assets and it is remarkable what talented artists can achieve with a color palette limited to white, or black and Torrit Grey.

The Torrit Grey Painting Competition, conducted annually in the Fall, attracts more entries every year. In 2008, we received over 160 submissions from painters willing to take the challenge of making a value based painting using only Torrit Grey and any black or white oil paint. The competition is judged by Robert Gamblin and the winners receive a supply of Gamblin Artists' materials.

You can see the winning entries from the 2008 contest at Torrit Grey Winners. Torrit Grey Painting Competition entry forms are available from your local fine art materials retailer, and from our web site at Guidelines & Entry Form.

"We invite you to enjoy the paint today—to capture its subtle monochromatic excitement - because this special color will only exist next year as paintings," says Robert Gamblin.

Donaldson® Torit® has been improving industrial air quality for over 90 years. To learn more about the their various air filtration solutions, visit Donaldson Torit.


The colours make work seem like play!
Mix them together it gets better and better,
And the whole thing will turn
Torrit Grey!

Rejection Sucks

I suspect most of us receive a rejection letter for shows now and again.  I just received my second one, two years in a row for this particular show.  It was such a nice letter, I could hardly get really upset!  But it does give you a little nudge of doubt.  Yes, I will try again. Fortunately I had one (of three submitted) accepted in a show this week.  I feel better.

I enjoy Rusty Jones' art and his blog.  He is so informative and sharing with his techniques, processes and methodology for painting.  Recently he was rejected for a show and wrote a very funny blog.  Here is the address:http://rustyjonesstudiocom.blogspot.com/2013/02/rejection-sucks  ...just in case you ever get that rejection letter!

http://kathleendunphy.com/blog


If you haven't located Kathleen Dunphy's blog yet, you are in for a treat.  She currently has a post on plein air work in the SNOW.  How appropriate, with Kansas City in the middle of a record breaking snow event.  I think we are edging near a foot and may see up to 15" before it is over.

I will post one of her paintings, Change of Seasons, for a tease so you go to her blog.  She is an amazing artist, and her blog is always full of information.  In this post she has tips on safety, comfort and even tips for bringing your dog on a paint out!

The following is posted with permission!

Snow Day! Tips for Plein Air Painting in the Snow

by Kathleen Dunphy

Who doesn't love the look of freshly fallen snow? A good winter storm can turn even the most mundane scene into something spectacular to paint. But the first time I bundled up and hauled my gear out in winter conditions, I learned just how challenging painting in the snow can be. It's always tempting to just take a few photos and use those as reference to paint from in my warm, comfortable studio, but one thing's for certain: you have to get cold to paint snow convincingly. Almost more than any other subject matter, snow requires direct observation to help the artist convey its subtle beauty. [...] 

Read the rest of this article at:
http://faso.com/fineartviews/56855/snow-day-tips-for-plein-air-painting-in-the-snow

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Jesse James Farm with MVIS

MVIS had a great turn out today at Jesse James Farm near Kearney, MO.  15 painters participated in the plein air paint out event.  Greg Summers was the 'host', and he is doing a great job organizing and planning events.  He also manages to take photos and PAINT!  Thank you to MVIS for all of their hard work.
I will highly recommend the members of KCPAPA to join this newly formed venue in our area.  I will also continue to post on this blog.  If you have information for me to include for upcoming shows and gallery events, please send me the news so I can post it.



Here are a few photos from todays paint out.  For more photos, visit the MVIS blog.  http://missourivalleyimpressionistsociety.com/blog.  Enjoy!

Debbie Payne, KCPAPA and MVIS member

Peggy Wilson, photo taken by Greg Summers.

Peggy Wilson, KCPAPA and MVIS member

The Jesse James Farmhouse

Dick Sneary working on a watercolor.

Greg Summers, one of the founders of MVIS.

Cathie Thompson

Susan

Tammy Dickerson's painting

Teddy Jackson