I think we can agree that plein air painting is challenging?

[Bartc]

I don't know about this "purist" view to Plein air, but I do understand it. Though I don't think I'd be able to stick with never being able to finish it up in the studio, or not bring my camera with me to take a bunch of reference shots of what I was painting.

Hell, like I said before, I don't even think I can paint outside for a length of time. I didn't even mention before that I have Lupus and can't be in the sun for too long, if at all. I suppose I can wear sun screen, long sleeves, and a hat, but there are a lot of predators where I live, and beyond driving distance. But I live in the most beautiful area. I would be scared of them. I'm kinda scared of them even when walking and carry my cane with me where ever I go. It has a heavy brass handle on it (just in case). I've pounded it on the ground a few times at larger bobcats. That was enough to make them walk in the other direction. A coyote (on its own) will run in the other direction, but not when there are five. Sideswipers and rattlers will give you a warning first, but not always.

I've gone around and taken gorgeous photographs and attempted to paint them at home. I turn them into my own fantasy scenes though. I'm not a great photographer either. But I still have so many I would like to paint. Almost all, or maybe all, of my landscapes come from real location photos. Some were photos plus sketches. I can do quick sketches, and then run for my life.

Arty, I shun the purists and their rules! In several social media I have gone on record saying that contest rules have nothing to do with creativity and have no sway over the rest of the painting experience. You paint whatever and wherever you like - that's my "rule"! ;-)

I wasn't aware of your challenges until this post, but if you want to take a snapshot and paint it indoors, bless you, it's nobody else's business where you "finish" the painting. Or even where you start it, for that matter.

For some reason people in Western cultures at least (maybe beyond that and I don't know it), seem obsessed with turning every experience into a competition. If not with others, then with yourself. It is contrary to how human creativity operates, to my way of thinking. And I don't think it adds anything to creativity other than somebody's mild or moderate adrenaline rush when engaged in one or when watching one. Painting isn't football.

BTW, I have seen and done some very good plein air work from a car outdoors. That's plein air too, period. Safer from any predators and even UV exposure, not to mention weather extremes.

One day I was out in a large field with my painting group. We were having a series of squalls quickly swooping in from the ocean bringing what is rare in the SF Bay Area, lightning. There we were, all exposed and a line squall with strong frequent strikes drops in on us within minutes! Being the tallest things with metal easels in the field, we all knew we were in mortal danger and scrambled as fast as we could back to our cars. The pastel I started in the field I had to finish on my steering wheel. And it came out well despite all that. I like to think that even the strokes capture something of the "energy" of the day and weather.

 

[Artyczar]

Thank you Bartc. I really appreciate your words of wisdom. I like what you say. I am reminded of watercolor purists a little bit. Sometimes I have tried never to use ink, or even pencil because that would not be a "pure" watercolor according to a purist, and truthfully, I rather like how my watercolors have been turning out without me outlining them in ink, but I know what you mean about there not being rules. Rules are pretty silly.

I still think, because my landscapes have a lot of surrealism to them, they couldn't ever be considered "Plein air" but they are Plein air-inspired at least.

I do like following all the threads in this forum. Very much. It's probably because I'm just such a fan of landscapes in general.

 

[Bartc]

Arty, most of my "watercolors" are actually "line and wash", in which the line is done in ink. If anyone tells you those aren't watercolors, they are full of it or of themselves, IMHO.
Same for those that use some gouache with the transparent watercolors. These can all be considered "water media", and mixing them is highly common and highly effective.
I'm not even sure where I'd draw the line between ink and watercolor, because many traditional inks are simply black, bluish or brown watercolors, thinned with water and often re-wettable with water. Just limited color, that's all.
Honestly, people can get so worked up about things that don't matter to the eye.

 

[Artyczar]

I agree Bartc. I really do. I only really mention it because I'm attracted to, and am enamored by watercolor technique that can be done with only brush work. It's just impressive to me. I only wish I had that kind of skill.

I don't want to hijack this thread at all, but I wanted to give at least one example of my picture-taking and result of my weird landscapes that are inspired by real locations. This is a place in Landers about 20 minutes out from where I live called Space Rabbit Ranch. I may have cropped the photo a little off center. It's a wider shot than this:

 

[Artyczar]

Oh! I didn't see your artwork at first Bartc, I really love that piece!!!!

 

[Bartc]

In one FB site I think someone was questioning my posting of any landscape that wasn't done in front of that very view alla prima (which is actually how almost all my paintings are done, just not a couple of them.)

It was of a pond edge. The painting was inspired by my observation months before of a pond edge, at which I sketched it in watercolor. I used my imagination and that watercolor to come up with a more interesting composition, which I painted in pastel outdoors, just not in front of that particular pond at that moment. In every sense other than "by the rules" it would be a plein air. But some busybody questioned that proposition, though they had a hard time justifying it by any definition - or why the hell it should make any difference to anyone, since it wasn't in a contest situation.

Turned out to be one of my best, one of the few that my wife actually requested that I frame and hang in our home, and that everyone seems to love and believe it was done in situ.

Go figure!

 

[Bartc]

I agree Bartc. I really do. I only really mention it because I'm attracted to, and am enamored by watercolor technique that can be done with only brush work. It's just impressive to me. I only wish I had that kind of skill.

I don't want to hijack this thread at all, but I wanted to give at least one example of my picture-taking and result of my weird landscapes that are inspired by real locations. This is a place in Landers about 20 minutes out from where I live called Space Rabbit Ranch. I may have cropped the photo a little off center. It's a wider shot than this:

View attachment 15265

View attachment 15266

Not weird at all. Just stylized.

 

[Artyczar]

That is gorgeous!!!

 

[john]

Yeah that's beautiful Bart. Great eye. I like that it's almost an abstract also. I would like to get more abstract. I mean my paintings. Some say I'm too abstract already.

Yeah the one of mine above has earned a place in the living room and it probably took the least time to do of all of my paintings.
I almost to hate to admit it, but it's the plein air thing. Yes making an effort sometimes results in progress. It's that effort part....

Oh and Ayin that one above is great. But you know, I like all your stuff. It's unique. But I don't think you need to be doing it outside in the desert. I don't know how one would even do that.

 

[Bartc]

Thanks Arty and John.
Just trying to encourage others to be more open to plein air.

 

[Artyczar]

Oh and Ayin that one above is great. But you know, I like all your stuff. It's unique. But I don't think you need to be doing it outside in the desert. I don't know how one would even do that.

Thank you for saying that John. ...I do think it's possible on an open, covered porch with a nice view. That was the only place I was really able to do sketches for a longer time period. I stayed at a place that had a wrap-around porch that that looked out onto a mesa. I think it was a perfect time of year (October).

 

[P. Barrie]

It’s my understanding that the west and southwest has very many accomplished plein air painters that hike in the desert, mountains, wilds, etc. to set up and paint. Of course one must take care were to step. Some wear snake protection type boots, take water and food. James Coulter and Jean LaGassick come to mind.

 

[Artyczar]

Maybe I will get out there in the spring when the flowers start to bloom. Right now it's 30 degrees.

 

[john]

Yeah same here. I would love to get out for a Winter's Solstice painting on wednesday. It's supposed to get up to 45 so maybe. 30 is definitely too cold.

 

[stlukesguild]

I am reminded of watercolor purists a little bit. Sometimes I have tried never to use ink, or even pencil because that would not be a "pure" watercolor according to a purist, and truthfully, I rather like how my watercolors have been turning out without me outlining them in ink, but I know what you mean about there not being rules. Rules are pretty silly.

Oh! And beware of using opaque white! gasp! I don't think I ever was exposed to such "purist" nonsense with regard to media during all my years in art school. After all, we were exposed to artists like Robert Rauschenberg, Joseph Cornell, Anselm Kiefer, etc... Oddly enough, I have come across such purist notions since then. I have actually had some questions about whether my work can be termed as "paintings" because after all, I work on paper and use pastel and color pencil as well as acrylic (and on a few occasions, oil). Honestly, I have no problem with what I do being termed "drawings" or "paintings"... although I suspect many drawing purists would not term my work... or even the pastels fully worked up in color by Degas or Redon as "drawings".

"A rose by any other name...?"

 

[stlukesguild]

Yeah same here. I would love to get out for a Winter's Solstice painting on wednesday. It's supposed to get up to 45 so maybe. 30 is definitely too cold.

Even if I were a landscape painter and wanted to paint plein air that would not have been a possibility here over the past couple of days with some rather serious wind going on.

Of course, that would never have dissuaded J.M.W. Turner:

 

[Artyczar]

WIND is a serious situation where I live too in the highlands. I live in a very high-wind territory, and it gets incredible at times. I'd say it is like that about 50% of the time here, no matter the season.

 

[Bartc]

No idea how to help with extreme wind especially with large surfaces that act as a sail when vertically mounted.

There are certainly ways to stake and tie down easels, or weight them down or all of the above. You could always paint more horizontally. A heavy table might work, but you obviously won't want to carry it far (I find most of us middle aged or older painters don't go far because of weight anyway.)

Or you can paint from a vehicle, or other sheltered situation. It's certainly not impossible by any means, just challenging. I have been forced into my car to paint on a few occasions by wind, rain or even lightning! And things worked fine, and yes, it's plein air too. (If you are purist, just open the damn window....)

I get a real kick out of the plein air videos on YT by Richard Musgrave-Evans in Australia. He has a rig - a super versatile "easel" system - attached to his truck. Nothing short of a hurricane or tornado is going to dislodge him.

My plein air journey started mostly with a small watercolor kit with small paper pads on my lap. Wasn't bothered by the winds with the little setup that I can recall.

I am more deterred by cold, since I hate it! Some of you snow painters amaze me. Rain kills my media, so have to shelter from that, but for laughs one of my painting partners turned me on to portable waterproof pop up shelters. Works for rain and light wind, not heavy wind.

 

[john]

The "rule" about not using opaque white with watercolor isn't really a rule. It's a recommendation if one is using transparent watercolors, because the opaque white just looks out of place. Thus the idea of trying to save the whites of the paper when possible. Plus the paper white is usually brighter. This really can't be seen on a monitor though. When I was painting in watercolor I would often scrape back down to the paper for whites, but sometimes that would become a mess also.

But Winslow Homer used opaque whites on his watercolors - along with scraping and saving - and no one is going to call his paintings bad.


As far as wind......that's worse than cold IMO. Give me a sunny freezing cold day with no wind over a warm day with high winds.

 

[stlukesguild]

Come to think of it, watercolor was the one area where I was exposed to "purist" notions during my art school years. Watercolor, it was suggested, "needs to breathe", and so you needed to leave areas of the white paper. Cezanne was put forth as the ideal watercolorist...

While these paintings may indeed be admirable, there were many other watercolor painters who impressed me far more... and who were not purists... often using opaque paints or "body color"... even opaque whites:

-Albrecht Dürer

-The Limbourg Brothers

-William Blake

-John Constable

-Gustave Moreau

-Winslow Homer