Painting on Granville Island

Posted in: Plein Air | 0
painting an older blue and yellow boat
Photo: Terry Sawatzky

The perfect day for the Opus Outdoor Painting Challenge. Five hours went by in the blink of an eye. I got a sunburn, even though I was painting in dappled shade. I forgot my sunscreen.

I am not a seasoned plein air painter. I usually paint in the studio. For me it’s not about creating a plein air masterpiece, though that would be entirely welcome. It’s about the whole package: the experience of painting outdoors, the unexpected, the equipment, the looking and working to somehow wrestle the world onto a 9×12 inch panel, the concentration, the people who may come and go, and the way the life of that day is somehow embedded in the results, no matter what state the piece may be in when you take it away.