The Door County Plein Air Festival

Beginning July 19, 2009, Peninsula School of Art will host over 40 artists from Door County, Wisconsin and across the country.  The artists have just 6 days to put Door County’s magical shorefront, fields and architecture down on canvas.  Free events for families and visitors will be held throughout the week.  Paintings created during the week will be sold in our gallery and at live auction, with prices beginning as low as $400.

Exhibit and sale of the artists’  works will begin with our Collector’s Preview and Gala Auction on Friday, July 24.  With painting prices ranging $400 and up, an original piece of Door County won’t break the bank.  Saturday, July 25, watch over 100 artists paint during  the Dockside Quick-Paint.  Painting begins at 9am, and fresh, wet paintings will be for sale on live auction at noon.  Downtown Fish Creek is the place to be!

Lakeside North Coast Plein Air Paintout will coincide with the Lakeside Wooden Boat Show, and will also included in the weekend, will be artists painting in Lakeside and the surrounding area.  The term “En Plein Air” means painting on location out of doors.  A Plein Air painter captures the spontaneity of the moment, and uses his or her talents to transform the moment into a painting.  It is an exciting process, because of the spontaneity and intense concentration that Plein Air painters have.  It is a tradition that has been carried on by artists since the mid-nineteenth century, all over the world.  It has recently become more popular in the United States over the last ten years.  Artists are getting out of their studios, and into the natural light.  Sometimes remarkable things happen, and they are able to capture that moment in time.  The sensations of being at the site, without use of any other references, but what is in front of them, can be very challenging, but at the same time exciting and rewarding.   This excitement comes through in the work, whether it is in the form of brush work, or color.  When it comes to landscape painting, those that work “En Plein Air” get as close to what Mother Nature has to offer, as any artist could ever expect.

Most people who like “Plein Air” work, enjoy the obvious aggressive brush work, and energy that comes forth from this approach to the visual arts.

The artists will paint on the Lakeside Waterfront on Sunday, July 13th from 1:00 – 3:00 pm.  Many will paint from area through out the Marblehead Peninsulas over the entire weekend.

The weekend’s original paintings will be for show and sale at 3:00 – 5:00 pm on the Lakeside grounds in Central park.