Copyright April M Rimpo

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Copyright April M Rimpo All Rights Reserved. You may share my work with attribution and a link to this source site, but all other uses are prohibited.

Tuesday, October 29, 2019

The Weather Held Out for the Plein Air Event

Just Past Dawn, fluid acrylic on 9"x12" canvas board
by April M Rimpo
Once a year the Columbia Art Center holds a Plein Air Event (paint out) in the Fall.  I love that this event is NOT in the middle of the summer like so many others. I dislike the heat of summer, so I don't consider participating in those events.  We had a tiny sprinkle of rain, but not enough to slow us down.  

Although I arrived thinking I would only do one painting then go home, I did bring a second surface in case I caught the bug and had to do another. I painted this year at Lake Kittimaqundi. The first was fluid acrylic on canvas board. I started it shortly after sunrise and was successful at keeping in mind how it looked at that moment even as the sky, water, and reflections continued to change while I painted.

When I did a plein air painting on Wilde Lake in 2017 I kept falling in love with every change of the reflections in the water and was unsuccessful in sticking to my plan.  I was still happy with the result, but it took much longer to finish that painting since I kept changing it.  You can change the water and not change other aspects of the painting since the sky affects the water reflections, so there is a big ripple effect each time you change the plan.

I scoped out where I wanted to paint a couple days before the event.  It was a gorgeous sunny day and I arrived at noon.  The light was quite different from the day of the event where we started with some blue sky in the east but gradually clouded over to a variety of gray clouds as the day progressed.  Because of the difference in time of day and light, the place I wanted to paint looked quite different, but the view across the lake was wonderful.


By the Foot Bridge, 8"x8" watercolor & fluid acrylic
 on Aquabord by April M Rimpo
The second spot I scoped out for a painting was just to the right of where I stood for the morning painting. All I did was pivot to my right and do the second painting.  It was a fantastic spot. 

For the first hour or so I was alone in that area, with the exception of a few walkers and runners who were enjoying the walking trail. I heard a few people talking who noticed me and recalled the plein air event was that day, but no one came over and talked to me.  Although I enjoyed chatting while painting in 2017, that morning had me so drawn into painting that I was glad to be left in peace to paint.

A couple other artists arrived later but they too were busy creating. It was a fantastic day to be outside, granted with a few extra layers of clothes since mid-October can be cool.  I surprised myself and really considered going out to paint again on Sunday when the day started out with bright sun.  It did turn to rain so I was glad I had not ventured out, but I definitely understand why so many artists do love painting outdoors rather than in the studio. 


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Copyright April M Rimpo All Rights Reserved. You may share my work with attribution and a link to this source site, but all other uses are prohibited.

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