My First Attempt at Plein Air Painting
We all have to start somewhere, and for me, that place was the 2019 Spring Semester at Brigham Young University-Idaho (BYUI) when I embarked on my very first plein air painting adventure under the guidance of the talented artist, Leon Parson. Little did I know, this experience would mark the beginning of an incredible artistic journey. Join me as I take you back to that moment when I had no idea what I was getting myself into.
It was April 2019, and with just two more semesters until my graduation, my grad plan pointed to this as the next step. All I knew at that point was that Leon, whom I had previously taken head & figure drawing from, was teaching, and he was nearing the end of his time at BYUI. So I signed up for the class without really knowing what to expect. I had seen impressive works by previous students displayed on the walls of the Spori and in the studio, and I couldn't help but envy them during my other painting classes.
As every art student knows, while we may not spend hundreds on textbooks, we certainly make up for it with our art supplies. This class was no exception, and Leon was passionate about good-quality pigments. The recommended paint list was extensive and included a range of colors and brands. I stocked up on most of these paints, but I found myself repeatedly running out.
Here’s the recommended paint list, it goes as follows: Ultramarine Blue - M Graham, Permanent Red Medium – Rembrandt, Alizarin Crimson, Cadmium Yellow Light or Hansa Yellow – M Graham, Yellow Ochre – M Graham or Rembrandt, Viridian Green – M Graham or Rembrandt, Ivory Black – M Graham. Titanium White – M Graham, Cold Gray – Rembrandt, Neutral Gray – Holbein, Gray of Grays - Holbein. Optional colors: Thalo Yellow Green – Grumbacher, Permanent Green Light – Winton, Cobalt Blue, Manganese Blue.
Despite having Oil Painting 1 & 2 and Life Painting under my belt, I vastly underestimated the amount of supplies I'd need. My Blick orders from that semester exceeded $300, and doesn't even include the numerous trips I made to the BYUI Store and Porter's Craft & Frame throughout the semester. This total doesn't account for what I also spent on other classes, considering I was a full-time student.
One of the items I ordered was an easel. The recommended options included a French Easel, a STRADA, or Soltek. Leon favored the Soltek brand, but the entire class, except for one smart chica who bought a STRADA (unfortunately that wasn’t me), opted for wooden French Easels. Don't get me wrong; it's a perfectly reasonable and affordable choice in terms of gear. But my desire to be unique led me to purchase a *fancy* black Blick French Easel, as I didn't want a plain wooden one. I also purchased a *fancy* bag called an easel satchel and I thought, 'What a great idea, it'll keep everything neat and be easy to carry.' Little did I know that both the easel and bag would become the death of me.
The easel was bulky and heavy, and the black surface showed every speck of dirt and paint. Even when oiled, the wooden palette wouldn't stay clean since the wood just sucked in the paints. When setting up the easel with it’s extending odd legs and having to adjust numerous nuts and bolts it became a balancing act. If you stored your supplies in the storage area, the weight would shift and make it difficult to manage. The bag while a great way in theory to move stuff around was floppy and hard to work with. The strap was barely big enough to put over your shoulder and the buckles were useless. That entire semester I was fighting the easel and it made the painting experience an unhappy one.
A key part of ‘plein air’ is to be in the ‘open air’ and the Idaho wind was not my friend. My easel tipped over multiple times acting as a sail when the painting caught the wind, spilling my supplies and paintings into dirt, sand, and even a stream. Bug bites, sunburns, and rain made the experience more challenging, sometimes prompting certain members of the class *coughs* to finish their paintings early and head out for dinner and talk class together with friends. I also majorly sprained my ankle tripping down the Spori tile stairs that semester which caused me to lose interest in trekking into rural Idaho every other day.
I vividly recall our first class outing. Leon sketched directions to his friend's field just outside of town on the chalkboard. We organized a group text and quickly formed carpooling groups, racing to be the car immediately behind Leon, who was known for being a speedy driver. Getting lost was a real possibility, especially given his hearing impairment, which made phone calls for rescue not very easy. As the proud owner of a "cool" minivan, I often became the designated driver, providing me with a better insight of the college town and surrounding areas. The excitement of reaching the car I'd parked in the morning and left on campus for the landscape class, which typically had scarce parking, was gratifying. My group of friends were often the very first car to everyone else’s disapointment.
Our first plein air day was a bit cloudy, windy, and chilly. I was so excited that I bought a matching navy lab coat from the BYUI store that Leon and nearly everyone else in the class wore. We trudged across the field, and I selected a spot that I thought was good and set up my materials for the first time. I was so proud that I had a friend take a picture of me at my easel. But when I attempted to start painting, my mind went blank. How on earth was I supposed to paint a landscape? Leon hadn't provided any specific directions so we could see our improvement by the end of the semester, and it worked. The difference in my skill was like night and day!
I have so many stories from my college plein air painting days that one leads to another. After two semesters of dealing with the woes of a French Easel the pandemic hit, and the money I had saved up for rent that semester was burning a hole in my pocket. I was able to purchase a STRADA easel, which completely changed my perspective on the painting experience and I often went throughout the quarantine months to get outdoors yet still social distancing.
What was initially just a means to graduate transformed into my deepest desire—all it took was having the right tools.
