Plein Air season in Florida is just about over - another month or so before it gets too hot to paint outside and once again I'll relegate myself to the cool cave of my studio. I have amassed many small plein air studies I'll use as reference for my larger studio paintings.
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| Painting Tree-Fort - photo of fort. |
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| Final Tree-Fort Plein Air Study - subtleties are glowing. |
I find that a season or two of plein air has brought me deeper into my art. Colors have appeared this year on my canvases that I've never spent much time with before - more purples, deep blues, and non-browns. Working only from photographs is limiting, and I'll never go back in that direction again. Sure. photos are great for reference. They provide you with a good basis for initial sketching and setting up composition. But snapshots don't capture color well - you can't see the purples in deep shadow, or the vibrancy of blue in the sky, or nuances in a green landscape.
It seems that plein air painting draws me out a few times a month. I go with my plein air group, Anastasia Plein Air, and join up with the Flagler plein air group as well. These take me all over the region, painting along back sandy roads, boat yards, and cobbled streets of the old city in St. Augustine, Florida.
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| Photo taken of Mary Hubley by St. Augustine Record during the National Park paintout in April 2016. |
Last month I did two week-long paintouts. There was a National Park paintout celebrating the park system's 100th anniversary. I was asked to give the demo for the event, and I found my picture and an interview on the front page of the local paper. Then I won second prize at the Flagler Plein Air paintout. Yay!
Next month, in May, the beginning of summer heat, I crazily have seven plein air dates scheduled, including two paintouts. A last hurrah before true blistering summer.
