Plein Air Painting Tips… Spring 2024
In this blog post I am sharing some tips which might be handy for you if you are not yet a professional artist. Otherwise you might know them all.
Anyway - it’s not a repost of someone’s post, but my personal reflections on experience I’ve got so far…
How to start:
Just make up your mind and get out! It doesn't matter if you are an experienced artist or haven't painted before at all.
If you have no experience, just remember how you drew in childhood. It was like an entertainment, wasn’t it? The only difference is that in childhood we mostly drew from our imagination and memories, but going out to paint in nature we kind of plunge into hundreds of natural shades and colours, everything moves in the wind, the sky changes so quickly! - but don’t worry! - Just try to paint /or draw an impression of the place.
Location:
This is probably the focal point of pleinair painting! -
The place you choose for painting should definitely evoke some kind of emotional response. It should either mean something to you personally, or attract your eye by forms and/or colours.
(!) You should notice the most vivid impression of the place and keep it in mind at least while you are painting.
Whenever I walk around the city or in the park, I always notice beautiful places, which look kind of special to me. I also remember the time of the day and lighting which makes the place look special…
When I was a student, I used to have a small notebook with addresses of places in the city that were a “hidden gems” for me. Most of them were off the bitten path, but they were incredibly good for sketching and painting.
You don't have to go far for pleinair paintng : it can be a corner of your garden, a favorite tree in the park, or just a place where you like to walk with your significant other or alone….
Materials
At plein air painting feel free to use any medium you like. Some paints are more expensive (oils), some less (gouache, acryl) - just choose those ones, which you can use without regrets in case if something goes wrong and you are not satisfied with the result. We can’t get ideal painting every time, it’s normal.
The fear of spoiling expensive paper / canvas / paints is incredibly constraining for beginners! (The little secret is that in fact you can't spoil anything, because any “bad” sketch or painting can be used as a basis (or imprimatur) for an absolutely new painting).
Time
If the day is sunny, do not paint outdors at noon. Bright sun creates a glare on the leaves, grass, everywhere… Also the painting itself should not be exposed to direct sunlight as well.
On a cloudy day, you can draw at any time. But my favorite time for painting is the "golden hour" - 1/1,5 hour starting approximately at ~4 PM, when the light suddenly becomes less bright, but very warm and even orange and all objects cast long beautiful shadows.
How to dress
Dress as if it were 10 degrees lower than really is.
I.e. if it's +15C outside, count on +5C.
You will stand or seat at one place for at least 1 hour, in the shade almost motionless. This is not the same as walking this hour.
Anyway, try to relax and enjoy the process not thinking much about the result. Trust yourself, sometimes “the result” comes at the very end of a painting session. So wish you a good painting this spring! Go out and enjoy it!