Plein air challenges

(C) 2017 Dale DiMauro

Plein air painting in watercolor is a real challenge. I have mentioned in prior posts how the changing light, a sudden burst of wind or rain, can alter the scene in a moment. Well, late this afternoon I experienced all these qualities in my hour or so working on this piece. As a result the final version is much different than my start.

My first wash involved adding blue for the sky above the distant hill. I misted the top of the paper with my sprayer then dropped in blue and rotated the watercolor block around to prevent the pigment from running down the page. The sky was faint when I blocked in the hill, but as the weather changed, the hill was obscured. There were two guys playing basketball on the right, and I sketched in one of the figures but he scurried away as the clouds moved in.

Regardless of the challenges, I am embracing open air painting. It makes me really concentrate on the task while honing my observation skills. It also frees me to paint unlike any studio piece. I have learned to approach a plein air painting subject differently, with flexibility and a focus on simplicity.