'Plein Air' Anyone?

Setting up for a Plein Air painting demo for guests on Whistler mountain.  

Plein Air painting has become very popular since the Impressionists first ventured out with their umbrellas after finding out they could, for the first time in history, go outdoors with their newly invented portable paints.  The practice has become so widespread and trendy in recent decades that many landscape painters feel that it is a necessary right of passage, or educational requirement even, if you want to be taken seriously as artist.  I don't feel that way.  

Understand, before the 'artist's colorman' appeared on the scene and made paints for sale in collapsible tin tubes, painters would make fresh paint in studio every day that was kept in sea shells, or animal skin bladders.  Not very easy to throw in your day pack.  Also, during the lifetime of Monet for example, the number of vibrant colors increased dramatically allowing for much more captivating 'impressions' of the natural environment.  Going out on a Plein Air expedition with Rembrandt's palette would not be particularly rewarding.  Now we have access to dozens more colors that would have made even Monet's head spin.  

At the 'Giant Steps' waterfalls in Paradise Valley, Banff National Park.  

Anyway, since then, landscape painters have taken to the woods and fields and mountains, as well as the streets, to practice their craft en plein air.  There are several advantages to this practice as I see it.  First, it really does help to view the changing colors and values in nature to help capture, or improvise on, the subtle, and dramatic effects one perceives.  Learning to synthesize, and simplify, is also a valuable skill that can be developed as you often need to work fast as things can change very quickly as you sit there doing 'live' painting.  There are of course other ways to develop those same skills, and all of my favorite historical painters never did plein air painting.  So there is that.  For me, there are a few reasons why I am not fond of plein air painting, but the main one is because I would rather keep moving.  

I much prefer hiking and taking lots of reference photos of the beautiful scenery to sitting in one spot and painting.  

Thank the tech gods for cameras, esp digital ones!  If I am going to spend time in a beautiful area, like the meadows in the Rocky Mountains for example, I am much happier hiking and exploring and taking in as much as I can.  In the 3 or 4 hours I would spend sitting and painting I can hike many kilometers and take dozens of pictures of amazing scenery that I can then use for inspiration and reference material back in the studio.  If I was living in the time of the Impressionists or the Group of Seven and did not have access to modern tech I would still be on the move with my sketch pad and pencil instead painting on the spot.  

But that’s just me.  Whatever your preference, we sure are lucky to be able to get out and enjoy all the wonderful landscape and paint it in whatever way we fancy.