Volume 44 Issue 6

Next Meeting – June 11 June is our annual potluck picnic to be held at Ann Neal’s home in Sedalia (directions below, map attached).

On the Agenda Election of new officers Women’s Club grant Report on Spring Show

To PLAG Members From Ann Neal

As President I want to say a big thank you for all your help and volunteering for jobs when needed. We have a great art club and I felt privileged to be your president for the last 1½ years. Thank you all for making my job easy and rewarding.

Annual Picnic

Ann Neal will host our annual June potluck. Anyone wishing to do some plein air painting there may arrive at 9 a.m. There will be a short business meeting (election and installation of new officers for the year) at 11 a.m. followed by the picnic. Bring your favorite dish and enjoy the day.

Directions: Take Hwy. 105 north out of Palmer Lake to mile marker 29. Turn right (east) on Oakland Dr. for about one mile to 2550 W. Oakland Dr. Look for balloons on the deck. Or from I-25 in Castle Rock go west on Wolfensberger Rd. to Hwy. 105, turn right (north), proceed about ¾ mile to Oakland Dr. and thence to 2550. See attached map.

PLAG Member News

Suzanne Jenne reports that the Robert Burridge workshops were a huge success!  Our PLAG gallery was a wonderful respite for 6 days of painting with a world class teacher.  I believe we’ll be featured in Robert Burridge’s next “Artsy Fartsy Newsletter” when he highlights the Colorado workshop.  You can go to www.robertburridge.com to learn more about him as well as sign up for his newsletter. Gallery space was a little tight, but the weather was beautiful much of the week and a number of participants preferred to paint under the trees in the back yard.  It is a lovely space to paint and many participants from areas as far away as Houston, Kansas City, Oklahoma, Oregon and Alaska commented on what a special building we have! Many thanks to Lucretia Vaile!

Gloria Williams has sold both of her entries in the miniatures show at El Dorado Gallery. Gloria has not been well lately so we hope the sales have lifted her spirits. She hopes to be all better in time for our Spring Show opening reception.

Kathleen Krucoff’s wire wrapped fused glass jewelry will be shown at the Second St. Art Market in Monument in time for the June Art Hop. She is also entering one of her pieces in our Spring Fine Art Show along with two other glass works.

John DeFrancesco’s first plein air painting session was attended by eight members who met at the Estemere Estate in Palmer Lake where they were welcomed by owner Roger Ward. The day was overcast, but still a fine day for painting...about half did that while others sketched.  We took some photos of participants that we hope to place on the PLAG Website. The next session is at Ann Neal’s at 9 a.m. prior to PLAG picnic.  

J Happy Birthday! ¯¯ to Shirlley Hawkins, June 9

Please welcome new members
Jane Dallager	Craig Mildrexler	Rosalie Grubesic

Another Golden Workshop

Contemporary Acrylic Techniques Workshop
Date: Friday. June 13, 2008
Time: 10:00- 3:00pm
Much of contemporary painting is knowing how to use materials in non-traditional ways. Acrylics have so many possibilities and this workshop will show you some of the latest techniques. We will cover gel transfers of photocopies and drawings, collage, pours and marbelizing, fluid and heavy body paint, glazing and explore different gels used as unique surfaces to draw or paint on. This is a great overview of acrylic paints and gels. Intended for any skill level to energize your process and give you some fresh ideas. All paint, mediums, gels and boards are provided by Golden so you'll have lots of materials to experiment with and take back to your studio. To sign up, email Mary at morrison.mary@q.com and I'll send you payment information and a short supply list. Or call me at 303-863-8175.
Details: Cottonwood Artists School, 25 Camino Drive, Colorado Springs, CO 80903
Contact: morrison.mary@q.com, 303-863-8175
Fee: 75.00 includes all materials Event Open to Public

WHY PAINT EN PLEIN AIR?

By John DeFrancesco

With apologies to PLAG members who don’t paint, this article focuses on plein air painting.

Currently, there are 25 PLAG members signed up for our informal plein air painting group. The idea is to meet at least once a month, weather permitting, in a different location to enjoy several hours of camaraderie while capturing the great outdoors on “canvas.”

The French “en plein air” is translated “in open air.” Essentially, it means painting from life. There are many reasons to do that, including the following:

n Painting outdoors allows close observation of nature’s light and colors. Nature displays various moods, presenting something new almost minute by minute.

n Because of rapid changes, one learns to paint quickly and to rely on memory of what has been observed to capture fleeting conditions.

n Capturing the scene quickly rather than laboriously typically gives the work a more “painterly” look. Looseness conveys the artist’s interpretations of the scene.

n Working in smaller sizes outdoors (usually 8 x 10 or smaller), the artist can capture an entire scene in one session. Instead of laboring over details, one learns to focus on abstractions: volume, shapes, light, shadow, values, color and the affects of reflected and diffused light on objects. One also learns by observing the true dimensionality of objects, as opposed to the two-dimensional representation in photographs used in the studio.

n Smaller paintings done outdoors, combined with photos, notes and memory provide excellent reference material to use in creating larger versions in the studio.

Finally, painting outdoors with other artists is fun. If you haven’t signed up to receive notices of upcoming sessions, e-mail me at: jdefrancesco522@comcast.net.

Our next get-together will be 9 a.m. to 11 a.m., June 11 at Ann Neal’s home prior to the PLAG annual picnic.

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Notice: The pick up date for the end of the Spring Fine Art Show has been changed from Saturday, June 28 to Sunday, June 29 due to a wedding scheduled on Saturday. Hours of pick up are 1:00 to 3:00 p.m.

PLAG’s website: www.palmerlakeartgroup.com. Add the address to your business card, tell your friends to look us up, help us advertise our group.

Please Note: If you would like to have an official PLAG member name tag, please contact Bruni Berkowitz, (719) 488-2158, and she will order one for you.

Reminder: contributions to the Newsletter are greatly appreciated. Also, please let me know about exhibits, sales, etc. Call or email: Mary Krucoff, (719) 488-8101 or emkaymonument@q.com. Deadline is the 25^th of the month. Also Please Note: if you haven’t received your newsletter by the 5^th of the month, please let me know. If you currently receive your newsletter via postal delivery and would be willing to switch to email delivery it would save us the cost of postage.