The Great Outdoors

Hoff, "Out Back," oil on panel, 9x12

The urge to sketch and paint outside seems to be spreading. Outdoor sketch groups exist everywhere, it seems. Certainly sketch groups exist in most of the big towns and cities in this country, and I suspect in other ones too. Online organizations of sketchers are thriving and so are plein air magazines and websites. Many artists are dedicated to working outdoors. Professional painters have worked outdoors since at least the beginning of the 19th century, of course, and often in groups. Monet painted with Boudin when he was learning and with many others--Degas, Bazille--as a professional.

Amateurs have probably always painted outdoors too, though wealth and leisure to do so were obvious requirements. Upper class Victorian ladies made watercolors indoors or out, often spending an afternoon picnicking and painting outdoors. Many ladies of that era were accomplished outdoor sketchers, even Queen Victoria herself. Today many dedicated amateurs are taking to the outdoors, in groups or singly.

Hoff, "Blue Spruce," oil on panel, 9x12

Some artists prefer the solitude of painting alone, close to nature, or love the intense observation required, or they go alone because they don't like distractions. Since acquiring my new pochade box, outdoor painting has become my primary activity. The work is more convenient with my lightweight setup. Painting outdoors forces me to deal with whatever is before me and respond. In a way you could compare painting outdoors to doing primary research--you're looking at the thing itself. (In secondary research you study a representation of the thing, whether mathematical or otherwise.) And if you work honestly you put down what is there not what you think is present. That last is the hard bit for many--dropping all assumptions.

Hoff, "Downstream," oil on panel, 8x10

Of course, one's purpose in doing a particular outdoor oil or watercolor sketch is important. If it's intended as a completed work and not a study the painter has latitude for interpretation. "Blue Spruce," for example, was to be a stand alone work; I intentionally pushed the color of the evergreen to a higher value to emphasize it, though in real life the color was rather dull, and isolated it in one corner of the composition. On the other hand, the sketch "Out Back" was a true study of sunlight on tree trunks and limbs, so I worked hard to be faithful to the source. The oil paint is the same, the motif is the same, but the intent completely different. With "Downstream," my first intention was simply to study water in a rocky stream, but as it progressed it became a stand alone painting.

Hoff, "Near the Marina," wc/ink, 5x9

Lately I've been going out with a group of dedicated painters here in Des Moines. We meet on Saturday afternoon and spend an hour or two sketching as a group. While we go to the same location, the results are quite different since each member of the group picks her or his own subject. We've gone to a number of different spots--a river marina, the bank of the Raccoon River (nearby), local parks, and sometimes residential streets. It is always a treat to hang out with like-minded people, particularly while painting, since most of my practice has been solitary. Afterward we gather at a local cafe for show and tell. Most of us work in watercolor, some in pretty large formats, but a few use oils. The time limit is about two hours. The watercolor here was done on the spot in one of my sketchbooks, which is still my go-to method for speed, convenience and portability.

Hoff, "Raccoon Bend," oil on panel, 8x10

If someone longs to go out and sketch, I say go for it. Don't worry about being watched, people are generally polite and interested. Don't be shy. Rudeness or incivility are rare, admiration common. Most important is the chance to face the subject in "real time" and not as a photo or video or memory.

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Links
Outdoor Painters Society
Outdoor Painter
Art in the Open