The Olympic Peninsula takes the spotlight later this month, on canvasses big and small.
Scheduled for Aug. 21-28, the fourth Paint the Peninsula features 19 specially selected plein air artists and six guest artists who will paint outdoors over the week to capture the Olympic Peninsula’s natural beauty.
The pool of 25 artists was selected from 97 artists registering from 25 states, three Canadian provinces and China, event chair Anne Dalton said.
This year’s judge is Christine Debrosky.
“We are the only plein air painting competition of this caliber in the state of Washington and our reputation is spreading,” Dalton said.
Not only an event to showcase artists, peninsula residents are encouraged to watch plein air artists create, Dalton said.
Attendees are encouraged to call the Port Angeles Fine Arts Center at 457-3532 from Aug. 22-26 to find out where artists are painting and to attend demonstrations and two evening lectures held at Port Angeles Fine Arts Center.
On Aug. 23, all 25 artists will paint within the boundaries of Olympic National Park. During the competition’s remaining days, artists will have the option to paint within the park or at another outdoor location of their choosing.
On Aug. 24, as part of the park’s centennial celebrations, artists present demonstrations at the Hurricane Ridge Visitor Center, Storm King Ranger Station and Lake Crescent Lodge at Lake Crescent.
Additional demonstrations will be offered throughout the day on Aug. 25 at Storm King Ranger Station and Lake Crescent Lodge.
“We are pleased to partner once again with the Port Angeles Fine Arts Center and especially appreciate the center joining our Centennial celebrations this year,” Olympic National Park Acting Superintendent Rachel Spector said. “We invite all our visitors to come watch the art as it’s being created.”
On Aug. 26, artists will be painting at the Port Angeles City Pier between 1-4 p.m.
More information about these in-park demonstrations can be found at www.paintthepeninsula.org/2016-schedule-of-events.html.
A workshop with Debrosky, who invites watercolor, oil and pastel painters to join her, is set to follow the event Aug. 28-20; Dalton said there are spaces remaining.
The workshop will run from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. each day with an option to paint later, upon agreement by all participants. Participants are asked to bring a NorthWest palette and plein air supplies. They will be notified, by email, of the meeting location. Cost to participate is $350 per person. For more information, contact Jinx Bryant at 912-4030.
About plein air art
Plein air painting is a unique style which utilizes natural light and shadows to reflect what is going on in the artist’s surroundings at that moment in time. Artists using the technique often talk about light, mood, color, movement and interpretation of feeling, Dalton said.
The finished paintings will be displayed daily and will be for sale from Aug. 22-26 at the Port Angeles FineArts Center.
Event attendees are also invited to attend an awards ceremony and reception, set for 6-8 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 27, to meet the artists and enjoy an evening of Northwest fare. Tickets are $30 and are available online at paintthepeninsula.org or $35 at the door.
In all, artists are up for $12,000 in awards.
Juried artists for the 2016 Paint The Peninsula competition include:
Catherine Hillis of Round Hill, Va. (watercolor)
William Rogers of Antigonish, Nova Scotia (watercolor)
Yong Hong Zhong of Lake Oswego, Ore. (oil)
Jacob Tarazoff of Santa Fe, N.M. (oil)
D.W. Nixon of Carmel, Calif. (oil painter)
Steve Whitney of Bothell (oil painter)
Rachel Pettit of Tooele, Utah (oil)
Bhavani Krishnan of Hillsboro, Ore. (oil)
Patrick Saunders of St. Louis, Mo. (oil painter)
Susan Kuznitsky of Portland, Ore. (oil and pastel)
Lynne Fearman of Sierra Madre, Calif. (oil)
Mark Akins of Littleton, Colo. (oil)
Romona Youngquist of Newberg, Ore. (oil)
Beth Bathe of Lancaster, Pa. (oil)
Jim McFarland of Victoria, B.C. (acrylic)
Ken Faulks of Victoria, B.C. (oil painter)
Richard Sneary of Kansas City, Mo. (watercolor)
Melanie Thompson of Richland (oil)
Mike Rangner of Albany, Ore. (oil)
Guest artists for the competition include:
Robin Weiss of Poulsbo (oil)
W. Jason Situ of El Monte, Calif. (oil)
Bruce Gomez of Denver, Colo. (pastel)
Ned Mueller of Renton (oil)
Gretha Lindwood of Portland, Ore. (pastel)
Eric Jacobson of Prineville, Ore. (oil painter)
See www.paintthepeninsula.org.
For information about visiting Olympic National Park, visit nps.gov/olym or follow it on Twitter @OlympicNP, on Facebook at OlympicNPS and Instagram @olympic nationalpark.
