Ashton Villa, Galveston, TX
May 2-8
Richie Vios, Pleasure Pier, watercolor, 11 x 15.
The members of the Outdoor Painters Society who are participating in Plein Air Southwest, its annual juried competition, are practically counting the days until they arrive on historic Galveston Island for the six-day event. After a year full of cancelled plans and activities, this is the first time many of them are returning to a plein-air event and the camaraderie it offers.
Texas plein-air painter Tina Bohlman, OPS president and founder of Plein Air Southwest, counts herself among those eagerly awaiting the moment she can set up her easel to paint Galveston’s distinctive beauty. “It was a quite a disappointment to have to cancel Plein Air Southwest last year,” she says. “But we’re all focused on making 2021 a banner year for the participating artists and public. We’re thrilled to be partnering with the Galveston Historical Foundation during the week of its annual Galveston Historic Homes Tour. Everyone has been so welcoming to us and supportive of the arts.”
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- Fran Ellisor, Right Down My Alley, oil, 9 x 12.
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- Randall Cogburn, Tall Ship Elissa at Port, oil, 20 x 16.
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- Gary Frisk, Red and Orange, oil, 16 x 20.
Bohlman describes the city of Galveston as a feast for the eyes, with no shortage of paintable subjects for participating artists to choose from: maritime scenes, centuries-old homes and mansions, sprawling beaches, and quiet marshland. Participating artist Robert J. Simone of Florida, who won Best of Show in 2019, agrees. “Driving into town for the first time, I did a double take at Old City Cemetery, with its weathered grave markers and mausoleums covered with decades of patina,” he recalls. “Best of all, it was teeming with yellow wildflowers! That place must have lit a spark because, as I ventured into the historic section of downtown, everything began to look eminently paintable.”
The 45 participating artists arrive on Galveston Island on May 1 to spend a week painting subjects of their choosing around town. (Works shown here are from the 2019 event.) They have until Friday, May 7, to gather their best work of the week to hang in the show. It takes place on Saturday, May 8, from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. in the grand ballroom of the 1859 Ashton Villa mansion. About 250 works are for sale, with four to eight pieces from each artist.
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- Ted Clemens, Airing the Nets, oil, 9 x 12.
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- Peggy Kingsbury, Night on the Strand, oil, 9 x 12.
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- Spencer Meagher, Rockin’ Rodney, oil, 12 x 16.
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- Robert J. Simone, Tall Ship Elissa, oil, 18 x 18.
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- Lon Brauer, Monuments, oil, 16 x 12.
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- Chuck Rawle, Wetlands, oil, 10 x 20.
Throughout that day, several of the participating painters set up their easels on the mansion grounds and the surrounding block to paint and talk with visitors. It’s a great opportunity for collectors to meet the artists, see their creative processes, and buy an unframed plein-air painting straight off the easel. A small reception and announcement of awards by juror Roger Dale Brown is planned for Saturday at 6 p.m. All paintings in the show are sold on a first-come, first-served basis. –Allison Malafronte
contact information
972.741.6154
www.outdoorpainterssociety.com
This story appeared in the May 2021 issue of Southwest Art magazine.