Spotlight | Arizona Plein Air Painters Show

Sedona, AZ
Sedona Arts Center, March 15-26

Julie Gilbert Pollard, Santa Fe Floral, oil, 11 x 14.

Julie Gilbert Pollard, Santa Fe Floral, oil, 11 x 14.

This story was featured in the March 2013 issue of Southwest Art magazine. Order the Southwest Art March 2013 print issue, or get the Southwest Art March 2013 digital download now…Or better yet, just subscribe to Southwest Art and never miss a story!

The Arizona Plein Air Painters annual juried members show returns to the Sedona Arts Center this month. The show opens on Friday, March 15, with a reception from 4 to 8 p.m. An awards ceremony begins at 6 p.m., with prizes for Best of Show, three runners-up, People’s Choice, and Artists’ Choice. Members of the group entered up to three new works each—one entry could be a studio piece, while the other two had to be created on location.

Walter Porter, Rural, oil, 10 x 12.

Walter Porter, Rural, oil, 10 x 12.

The APAP organization consists of Arizona artists dedicated to painting directly from life. The group has a broad mission that includes art education, natural and cultural heritage preservation, and hosting art shows and local paint-outs. Here we introduce you to a handful of the more than 80 artist members.

Watercolorist Marsha Owen enjoys depicting the variety of landscapes near her home in Flagstaff. “I can choose to paint the aspen forests of the San Francisco Peaks, the floor of the Colorado Plateau, the sunflower meadows of Flagstaff, or the red rocks of Sedona,” she says.

In the southern part of the state, Walter Porter ventures out from his home in the Tucson Mountains to paint en plein air. Additionally, to escape the intense heat, Porter spends part of the summer in his studio working on larger landscape, figurative, and western pieces.

 

Robert Dalegowski, Enlightenment, watercolor, 18 x 24.

Robert Dalegowski, Enlightenment, watercolor, 18 x 24.

Marla Smith began painting later in life, after her children were grown. She has always been fascinated by the beautiful landscapes that surround her, and much of her material is gathered in the early mornings on the small cattle ranch she owns with her husband near Prescott.

For watercolorist Robert Dalegowski, plein-air painting frequently involves multiday backpacking trips, usually in the Grand Canyon. Scenes featuring water are painted using water from that location. Dalegowski’s works are never exact representations, but rather “edited visions that express the glow of light and complexity of mood.”

Phoenix artist Julie Gilbert Pollard creates oil and watercolor landscapes in a fluid, painterly manner. “The magical allure of the natural world—and my reverence for it—compels me to attempt to capture its essence on canvas or paper,” she says. —Lindsay Mitchell

contact information
602.320.9523
www.arizonapleinairpainters.com

Featured in the March 2013 issue of Southwest Art magazine–click below to purchase:
Southwest Art March 2013 digital download
Southwest Art March 2013 print issue
Or subscribe to Southwest Art and never miss a story!


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