Plein Air Painting

This article written by Lil Leclerc. Lil has be represented by Gallery of Dreams for over two years.

Plein Air painting is painting oil, watercolor, pastel, or a sketch that is done in entirety in the outdoors, usually in one sitting. A painting may be done over several days because of the largeness of the canvas. I use a small board 6x8 inch or 8x10 inch so that I can finish the painting in one session, usually in 1-2 hours. I use a limited palette so that I get color harmony in my paintings. I also do not want to carry a lot of equipment or paints with me. I like to keep my supplies limited to less than 10 pounds in weight.

My palette is ultramarine blue, cadmium yellow light, or medium, lemon yellow, Alizarin crimson, cadmium red medium, Naples yellow, and titanium white. I use Liquin to help in drying the paint. Colors right out of the tube are usually harsh and will not give you the emotion or statement that you want. They will give you a harshness in your painting. With the colors blue, red and yellow I can mix the whole range of colors, an get harmony in my painting. It is important to practice mixing or identifying colors before you go out to paint. If you have a problem get or make a color wheel to help. I often use a color wheel to help me mix a particular shade of a color. As everyone knows primary colors are blue, red and yellow. Secondary colors are produced when primaries are mixed: B&R=purple, B&Y= green, R&Y= orange. Tertiary colors produce degrees of gray (brown grays or black grays, red grays or purple grays). When you try and portray atmosphere and depth you will gray the colors the farther away from you the subject is. . So this means that the closest to you is the brightest and the purest of color. There are exceptions to the rule when you want to illuminate a particular subject or want to focus on something that is in mid ground or farther away.

In plein air painting I will use large value spaces. This means that I will use a large brush, a # 6 or # 8 filbert or flat to apply to canvas the scene in front of me, by using color and value to produce a recognizable scene. I do not do great detail to the painting. My goal is to paint the shadows and light areas, as quickly as possible. Most plein air paintings are used as a reference painting to reproduce another larger painting in the studio. Today’s plein air is often detailed enough to be in competitions and shows. The longer you practice the faster and better you will get.

I use gessoed board, or home made canvas boards for painting. When I do a paint study I may use a canvas sheet, such as “Yes” or a linen canvas. The gessoed board is excellent for transporting and is sturdy enough to handle the rough handling a plein air painting sometime has to endure. The ease of transportability is what I am looking at. I have several ways to transport wet boards. Homemade transport boxes serve as well as store bought boxes. Cardboard storage boxes, as well as cereal boxes work well. There are many ways to transport a painting. I have transported a painting on the dashboard of the car only to drop the painting in the dust at the studio. The painting was allowed to dry and them the dust was brushed off the painting. It was one of my better paintings.

Art Can Be Found Anywhere, From Anyone!

This blog entry was written by Jon Solbakken. Jon is a part of the Gallery of Dreams team and staff. He is an emerging artist and apprentice to Tim Trask.

Being a member of the team at the Gallery of Dreams as well as apprenticing under Master Sculptor Tim Trask has really immersed me in the world of fine art for some time now. Part of what I do for the gallery is to aid in the reception of new art. This involves assessing the quality and saleability of fine art. For me personally, there are a few questions that enter my mind. The first question is: Does this piece reflect the artist themselves? The next questions that follow are: What is the story behind this piece? What emotion is the artist attempting to tap into from their potential collectors?

Having this knowledge and experience viewing fine art has opened new doors for me in so many ways. One of which has been judging local art shows in and around Cochise County. The latest event I judged was the Fine Art Exhibition at the Cochise County Fair in Douglas, Arizona. There were two main categories in this exhibition. One was for students and the other was adults. These were of course divided into many sub categories, but to save time, I will only mention a few.

The student category included paintings, graphite drawings, and multi-media pieces. The adult category basically consisted of amateurs, semi-professional, and professional. I was truly impressed by what I saw presented in the students category! They showed tremendous talent and possess vast amounts of potential. With the right encouragement and teaching, I believe that these and other students around the nation would be enabled to bring true innovation and a shift in the perception of fine art as we know it! WE NEED TO SUPPORT OUR STUDENTS ART PROGRAMS!

As for the adults, we'll just say that I was slightly more critical of their work. I'm not saying that I wasn't impressed with it. I just expect more out them. There were a few that were absolutely excellent! These artists were showing a mastery of their talents and really trying to push the envelope! Their composition was good, their presentation was wonderful, and just by viewing the pieces, I could see a real part of the artist in them. Ironically enough, My "Best of Show" choice went to a semi-professional.

This just goes to show you that great art can be found anywhere, from anyone! I think we are on the verge of something great in the world of fine art! I believe we are at the cusp of a new movement and I can't wait to see what the future will bring. What do you think the future will bring in the world of art? Do you think you are starting to see it now? If so, do tell! I am always keeping my eyes and mind open!

Jon Solbakken

Gallery of Dreams

Thinking Outside of the Box During Tough Times

Let's face it, when there is a tough economy one of the first items that people stop purchasing is fine art. Fine art galleries and artists struggle to make ends meet. However there are benefits to this struggle, it forces everyone to think outside of the box. Gallery of Dreams has done this by incorporating smaller more affordable fine art jewelry, cards and prints. We have also taken great interest in what the members of the community have to say. Last year winter visitors requested art classes of various types. Therefore, we started offering classes. Last winter they were a success! This fall and winter, we have begun planning for more workshops and classes! For example, Lindsay Roberts, a local artist, will be teaching a brass ornament workshop where students will learn how to peen and shape sheet metal using jewelry and tinsmithing techniques.

Many of the artists at Gallery of Dreams have also taken the concept of thinking outside of box and came up with some brilliant ways to inspire interest in fine art.

Alexandra Orton, Cochise County resident and Gallery of Dreams artist, has implemented several creative ideas. By creating an online inventory through Greeting Card Universe , Alexandra has made her art available to clients all over the world and has made it affordable to those who appreciate fine art but cannot necessarily purchase original art work. These greeting cards are fabulous to send or frame! Alexandra has also started a Facebook Fan Page where she not only updates her fans by posting her latest work, but she also posts clever Facebook statuses such as, "Alexandra Orton is making an art supplies list and checking it twice," or "Alexandra Orton is playing with clay." This gives her fan base an idea of "a day in the life" of an artist. It also demonstrates the personality and character of the artist.

With over 300 million active users Facebook is a social networking site that has much potential for artists. Gallery of Dreams artist, Jon Vaughn has a fan base of 141 and counting and he has already seen results in sales! Facebook statistics show that more than 10 million users become fans of pages per day!


Oil painter and Gallery of Dreams artist, Deborah Peters, used her passion of big cats to think outside of the box. Deborah received an offer from a big cat rescue facility to be a part of a gallery that is still in the works. This inspired her to find other big cat rescue facilities on the Internet that might be interested in selling her paintings. She was successful! She found an organization, Big Cat Luxe. This organization's core premise is that one can contribute financially to the extremely important work of Big Cat Rescue while finding just the right gifts for the home as well as office accessories. "I knew this was something unique to be a part of, " says Deborah. For Deborah it is a unique venue for the exposure of her art and passion.

As the manager of a fine art gallery and an art lover; it is very inspiring to hear stories of artists who keep up the good fight and keep art interesting! I know there are thousands of stories of artists and galleries who think outside the box. Do you have an inspiring story? Please tell! We can all help each other and stay positive even when times are tough!

Mia Schultz
GALLERY OF DREAMS