CAPE ANN CAPE ANN plein air plein
air
October 4 - 12, 2025
October 4 - 12, 2025
7 Days 7 Days
35 Juried Artists 35 Juried Artists
$20,000 in Awards $20,000 in Awards on Cape Ann, MA on Cape Ann, MA
At Applied Materials, our innovations Make Possible® a Better Future and our commitment to equity-centered community engagement contributes to a more just, fair and humane world.
Presidents’ Note
We Are Thrilled to Bring Cape Ann Plein Air Back For a 9th Year!
Welcome to the premier outdoor painting event in the country: Cape Ann Plein Air. We are proud to present 35 award-winning artists, from over 17 states, painting in our five Cape Ann communities. From October 4–12, you’ll find artists bringing their canvases to life throughout Gloucester, Rockport, Essex, Manchester-by-the-Sea and Ipswich.
The Cape Ann Plein Air 2025 week-long event presents a packed schedule including “free” daily outdoor painting demonstrations as well as Palate to Palette experiences in local restaurants, a “meet the artists” night and so much more. Art takes center stage for an entire week for your enjoyment and creative enhancement while bringing awareness to our important art heritage on Cape Ann.
The highlight of the Cape Ann Plein Air week is the Gala & Art Sale on Friday, October 10 from 6–8 p.m. at the North Shore Arts Association. Here you will have access to over 200 paintings, created during the week and available for sale
We want to thank our sponsors who collectively help us provide over $20,000 in awards. A huge thank you also goes to our housing hosts, local businesses and you, the general public, who help us bring all of this to the community each year.
Please visit CapeAnnPleinAir.org for news about the week including a full calendar of events throughout the week. Hope to see you there.
Warmly,
Pat Alto & Beth Buckingham
CAPA Co-Presidents 2025
Cape Ann Plein Air 2025 Housing Hosts
We extend a huge thank you to our Cape Ann residents who open their homes to our artists for the entire week creating lifelong friendships.
Amy Allen & Michael Wiklund
Pat & Glenn Alto
Kristin Gynda Bedell
Terry & Liam Byrne
Cindy & Jon Calder
Louisa Casadei-Johnson
Karen & Joe Curran
Carol & David Delaney
Laura Dow
Sarah & Mike Dyer
Mona & Michael Faherty
Susan Hall
Olga Hayes & Ken King
Christine Lehmann
Susan & Roger Levine
Suzanne & Mark Lynch
Anne-Lise & Pat Morss
Isabel Parlee
Holly & Ken Riehl
Patty & Tony Sapienza
Thom Smoker & Andrew Hankinson
Kimberley Voltero
Kate & Dave Willwerth
2025 Board of Directors
Executive Board Members
Pat Alto, Co-President
Beth Buckingham, Co-President
Traci Thayne-Corbett, Vice President
Sarah Willwerth-Dyer, Treasurer
Board
Members
Billy Burgoyne
Marianne Coons
Sara Harper
Susan Levine
Liz O’Connor
Ron Seger
Mike Storella
Advisors
Erika Brown
Ken Riehl
Jessica Spinelli
Contractors
Marcia Hubbard, Bookkeeper
Memory Layne, Social Media/Design
Awards & Sponsors
Painting Awards Sponsors
$6,000
ARTIST CHOICE
(BEST BODY OF WORK)
Jill & Stephen Bell ($1,000)
BEST ABSTRACT
Pat & Glenn Alto ($1,000)
BEST IMPRESSIONIST STYLE
Charlie Shurcliff Memorial Award
Coons Family ($1,000)
QUINTESSENTIAL
ROCKPORT
Jody & Ron Seger ($500)
BEST AMERICANA
Beauport Hospitality ($500)
BEST BEACHES
Brace Cove ($500)
BEST MANCHESTER-BYTHE-SEA
Mike Storella ($500)
BEST MARINE ACTIVITY
Leslie Lobell & Eric Timsak ($750)
BEST NOCTURNE
Leslie Lobell & Eric Timsak ($750)
BEST PEOPLE AT THE BEACH
Connolly Family Charitable Fund ($500)
BEST SEASCAPE
Kelly Automotive ($500)
ART AND ARCHITECTURAL DESIGN
Bazel General Contracting ($500)
OUTSIDE THE BOX: LE NOUVEAU VENU
Greater Cape Ann Chamber of Commerce ($500)
PEOPLE AT WORK AND PLAY
Susan & Roger Levine ($500)
Event Sponsors
BEST STREETSCAPES
Gloucester Rotary Club ($500)
DAVID CURTIS MEMORIAL
Judy Curtis ($500)
2 HONORABLE MENTIONS
Dick Blick (two $100 Gift Certificates)
2 HONORABLE MENTIONS
Rosemary Brushes (Two sets of brushes, $200 value)
We thank the following businesses for their generosity and support of our event.
CAPE ANN plein air
EVENTS CALENDAR
October 4-12, 2025
check capeannpleinair.org for details
Sunday, Oct. 5 - Thursday, Oct. 9
Sunday, Oct. 5
12-1:30pm | Artist Demo
Visit Charles Fine Arts Gallery at 196 Main Street, Gloucester to view more work from our 35 juried Cape Ann Plein Air Artists
4-8pm | Nocturne, Essex Causeway Area
5-8pm | Palate to Palette, The James, Essex w/ Durre Waseem
Monday, Oct. 6
12-1:30pm | Artist Demo
6-8pm | “Meet the Artists” Welcome Party Beauport Hotel, Gloucester (Free, registration required)
Tuesday, Oct. 7
12-1:30pm | Artist Demo
5-8pm | Palate to Palette, Oak to Ember, Glou. w/ Charles Newman
Wednesday, Oct. 8
12-1:30pm | Artist Demo
5-8pm | Palate to Palette, 35 Beach, MBTS w/ Carolyn Lindsey
Friday, Oct. 10
6-8pm | Gala and Art Sale, North Shore Arts Association
Saturday, Oct. 11
9am-5pm | Art Sale, North Shore Arts Association (Free)
QUICKDRAW $2,000 in Prizes!
9am-2pm | Manchester-by-the-Sea First Parish Church Community Hall
Sunday, Oct. 12
12-1pm | Judge’s Remarks
10am-3pm | All Day Art Sale, including Small Works
CAPE ANN plein air
Community Events All Year Long! capeannpleinair.org
Don’t forget, Cape Ann Plein Air is in our communit y all year long! Here is our schedule throughout 2025! This year we’ve taken our popular Palate to Palette events “On the Road” to new communities to spread the joy of art! Join Us!
Palate to Palette’s in 2025
February @ 35 Beach, Manchester-by-the-Sea with artist Marion Hall
March @ Oak to Ember, Gloucester with artist Dennis Doyle
April @ Seaport Grille, Gloucester with artist Linda Lea Bertrand
May “On the Road” @ Mission Boathouse, Beverly with artist Holly Anderson Popeo
June @ The James, Essex with artist Shelly Eager
July @ Ipswich Ale, Ipswich with artist Traci Thayne Corbett
August @ Emerson Inn, Rockport with artist Chris Plunkett
September “On the Road” @ Alchemy, Lynnfield with artist Adam LoRusso
Community Paint-Outs
April: Gloucester High School, Young Adult Paint-Out with artists Dennis Doyle, Loren Doucette, Dylan McKnight and Jason Burroughs
May: Motif Day No 1 Paint Out, Rockport
June: North Shore Arts Association Paint-Out, Gloucester
August: Rocky Neck Art Colony Paint-Out, Gloucester
August: Schooner Festival Paint-Out, Gloucester
CAPA Builds Community
Cape Ann Plein Air is committed to bringing plein air painting to our community year round! This year we presented a wide range of activities inviting artists of all ages to make art, watch and learn from the pros, and become part of the CAPA community.
Fresh new designs, available in store for purchase & delivery, or to custom order.
Our mission is to ensure that EVERY child on Cape Ann has access to the benefits of art making
www.arthaven.org
2025 Events
• Palate to Palette, our monthly events that invite professional artists to paint live at local restaurants.
• Community Paint Outs are offered for free from May to September in partnership with local art & community organizations. This year we brought more than 400 artists of all ages and skill levels out to paint.
• Educational Paint Outs bring professional artists and high school artists together to learn from each other.
Plein air painting is an integral part of Cape Ann’s culture. This area’s light and landscape have inspired artists to paint here for decades. CAPA events create opportunities to experience plein air painting (as an artist or art lover) while enjoying the singular beauty of Cape Ann.
SUBMISSION PERIOD: JULY 17 – SEPTEMBER 8
EXHIBITION: NOVEMBER 15 – DECEMBER 31
En Plein Air
Photo by: Collene Blair
Cape Ann Plein Air
WEEKLY LOCAL NEWS & HAPPENINGS. SINCE 1888. At last—the views we've been searching for!
Hiu Lai Chong
Hiu Lai Chong is an oil painter who uses vivid colors and sensitive brushstrokes to express mood and feeling in her subjects. She received her early art training in Hong Kong and a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from The School of the Art Institute of Chicago. Her paintings have won numerous awards. In 2012, Hiu Lai received the Grand Prize and Artists’ Choice Award at Plein Air Easton, Maryland. She was featured in the November issue of PleinAir Magazine by Editor-in-Chief Steve Doherty. In 2016, She received Certificate of Excellence award from International Portrait Competition by Portrait Society of America. Hiu Lai is an artist member of the California
Arts Club, Portrait Society of America, Signature Member of the Oil Painters of America, the American Society of Marine Artists and Mid-Atlantic Plein Air Painter Association, Laguna Plein Air Painter Association, and member of the Washington Society of Landscape Painters.
Hiu Lai’s artwork has been collected by Anhui Provincial Museum, China; San Angelo Museum of Fine Arts, Texas; and have been exhibited in museums across the country. She has been featured in articles in PleinAir Magazine, Fine Art Connoisseur, Southwest Art, Elan Magazine, HillRag and was included in the 100 Plein Air Painters of the MidAtlantic book.
Mat Barber Kennedy
“Through the process of drawing and painting, I am engaged in the archeology of material culture, inspecting, exploring and celebrating physical manifestations of human history. My work is all about people really, though they are conspicuously absent from my paintings. I am fascinated by what we built and what we did. It’s a kind of anthropology. My paintings are love songs.
“Born into a family of architects, I have an abiding passion for buildings and the fabric of cities; bricks and mortar, plaster, concrete and steel. I have been looking at the aging, decaying parts of buildings for as long as I can remember. In some sense I think my work is a kind of portraiture hoping to reveal more than just the appearance of things but revealing something of the life of things.
“I have never considered myself a purist, nor even defined myself as a watercolourist even though thats pretty much all I’ve ever done. There is something liquid about my work and water, as the primary agent, wants to flow, splash and drip, so I think one would say that my work is unmistakably watercolour, but I have spent years trying to escape the flatness of the page by adding non water soluble elements, thickening agents, collage and applying paint straight out of the tube with my fingers and palette knives and rubbing it away with shirt sleeves and paper towels.
“I am a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts and a member of the Royal Institute of Painters in Watercolours and of The American Impressionists Society. In 2008, I was awarded the Turner Medal in London.”
Suzie Greer Baker
shenandoah, tX
Suzie Baker is an award-winning oil painter based near Houston, Texas, known for her expressive, impressionistic style and masterful use of color and light. Her diverse body of work spans luminous landscapes, evocative still lifes, and striking portraits, all painted with a confident, alla prima approach that captures the vibrancy of her subjects. Her paintings have received national recognition, gracing the pages of PleinAir Magazine, Fine Art Connoisseur and Southwest Art. She regularly exhibits in prestigious national shows, premier plein air events and top galleries, with her work held in museum and private collections across the country.
A dedicated leader in the art community, Suzie has served on the board of the Oil Painters of America since 2014, including a term as President from 2020 to 2022. Painting en plein air since her teenage years, she is also a sought-after instructor, known for her engaging, humorous teaching style. Through workshops, event demonstrations and instructional videos, she inspires and educates artists worldwide.
Greg Barnes charlotte, nc
Greg Barnes got his formal training at Wake Forest University, receiving a BFA in 1985. Following college, Greg entered a career path that included technical illustration, computer graphics, computer-based training and multimedia programming. Throughout those years, Greg always kept his art supplies close at hand. In 2002 after 9/11, he and his family took a leap of faith by pursuing a full-time fine art career. Among his first commissions were portraits, where pastel became his medium of choice. Greg enjoys painting on location, and as a result of working quickly, leans towards impressionism. Strong design and a bold use of color round out Barnes’ style. Maintaining a studio in Charlotte, NC, Greg travels the country doing art festivals, plein air events and teaching workshops. Greg is a member of the Plein Air Painters of the Southeast and is represented in galleries in Miami, FL; Greenville, NC; and Crested Butt, CO.
Beth Brownlee Bathe
strasburg, Pa
Beth Bathe is an artist residing in Lancaster, PA. After a long career as a graphic designer, her partner gave Beth an easel and paints for Christmas, which then sat in the basement for a little over a year. She eventually dusted off the easel and decided to take an oil painting class. After her first session, Beth was hooked and now pursues painting full time. Primarily painting in oil en plein air since 2013, she participates in competitions from Maine to Washington State, for a total of 10+ competitions a year. Her paintings have won numerous awards and honors, including a recent Second Place Overall (March) and a Best Vehicle (August) in the monthly 2023 Plein Air Salon Competitions and, most recently, second place at Cape Ann Plein Air 2023.
Beth’s painting style is unique, looking somewhat like a watercolor—or is it an oil painting? She uses water mixable oil colors in thin washes with a limited tonalist palette, using unconventional tools such as squeegees and cotton swabs along with her brushes. Her representational paintings have been described by critics as evoking nostalgia, like that of an old sepia-toned photograph, often with just touches of color. She is highly influenced by painter Andrew Wyeth, and her subject matter is often what she refers to as the “vanishing landscape,” including finding beauty in buildings, barns and old towns of a time gone by. She teaches workshops at Short Dog Studio that she shares with her photographer partner and their two cardigan welsh corgis.
Thomas Bucci
Thomas Bucci is a watercolorist living in coastal Maine. After working briefly as an architect, he moved to painting full-time, focusing on plein air work. He has won awards at many events, including Plein Air Easton, Olmsted Plein Air Invitational, Mountain Maryland Plein Air, Cape Ann Plein Air, Wayne Plein Air, Salmagundi Club’s Annual Members Show, Transparent Watercolor Society of America, Watercolor USA, American Impressionist Society and many others. His work has been featured in PleinAir Magazine, Fine Art Connoisseur and the Art Renewal Center publications.
“I am happiest when painting on location and directly from life. Although I like to work ‘en plein air,’ I blend direct observation and imagination to create my own interpretation. I often move, add or change things to suit the needs of a particular painting. Like a fisherman’s tale, I tell the story the way I’d like it to be.”
Lyudmila Tomova Clark
cary, nc
Lyudmila Tomova Clark is a globally acclaimed, award-winning artist known for her expressive, impressionist style. Specializing in figurative, portraiture and plein air painting, she works primarily in oil and watercolor, seamlessly blending abstraction with realism to capture mood and movement. In 2023–2024, Lyudmila earned 40 awards in national and international exhibitions, including 16 first-place honors. Her work has been recognized in juried shows such as the PleinAir Salon, Modern Impressionist Salon, AIS, OPA, NOAPS, ArtFields, RFAS, AAPL, IWS and more.
A distinguished Signature Member of several esteemed organizations, she holds Signature status with the Watercolor Societies of NC (Silver Signature), GA, LA, Southern, MO and SWS.
Her passion for plein air painting has led to her selection in top events across the U.S., including Easton, Paint Grand Traverse, Telluride, Lighthouse, Bluff Strokes, Glaciers, Suffolk and New Bern, where she has won multiple awards. She also teaches workshops nationwide in watercolor, oil, acrylic and drawing.
Lyudmila’s work has been featured in leading art publications, including an eightpage article in PleinAir Magazine, as well as Art of Watercolour, Pratique des Arts, International Artist, Watercolor Artist and Walter Magazine.
She holds a BFA in Illustration with a gold medal from FIT in NYC and studied at the Academy of Fine Arts and the Special School of Fine Arts in Sofia, Bulgaria. Originally from Sofia, she immigrated to the U.S. in 1990, building a thriving career as a painter, illustrator and designer.
Henry Coe Parkton, md
“I’ve spent most of my life doing plein air paintings in oil, primarily landscape. I have a master’s in fine art from Maryland Institute College of Art and have curated and taught at The Academy of Arts and Chesapeake College in Easton, MD. I have done a seven-month artist residency in China (1982–83), spent another five months traveling and painting in Southeast Asia, and did three artist residencies in France, returning there many more times to paint. In the United States, I’ve painted primarily in the Mid-Atlantic region, Maine and Texas, and shown my work in galleries in Maryland, Chicago and Houston.
“I have always been fascinated with light in air traveling through space—how it defines what we see and how we see and how light and shadow describe form. For me, oil paint has been an excellent medium to establish a give and take or dialogue between myself and the subject. It has endless possibilities in how it can be applied and has an immediacy and freshness that I prefer. Which brings me back to plein air: the nature of constantly changing light and shadow, sky and clouds means quick decision-making and keeps the process constantly challenging.”
Michael Compton
cambridge, ma
Award-winning artist Michael Compton was born in Portland, Oregon in 1949. His childhood years were spent in California, Colorado and Illinois. He studied art and graphic design at Colorado State University and The Minneapolis College of Art & Design, completing his studies in 1974. Finding work initially as a package designer for Minnetonka Labs in Chaska Minnesota, Michael enjoyed a graphic arts career that also included print and book illustration and fabric print design in addition to an ongoing presence in the field of fine arts as a watercolorist and painter. His paintings can be found in numerous corporate and individual collections.
Michael now devotes his time entirely to painting, maintaining a studio at 11 Miller Street in Somerville, Massachusetts. His current interest and emphasis is on his plein air work with appearances at Plein Air Easton, Cape Ann Plein Air and En Plein Air Texas.
In 2020, Michael won an award of merit at the American Impressionist Society International show and was included in the 2021, 2022, 2023 and 2025 Oil Painters of America salon exhibitions.
Vlad Duchev
baltimore, md
Vlad Milan Duchev was born in 1965 in the small town of Pokrov (former Ordzhonikidze) in Ukraine. Growing up, he was impressed by the art of Russian-Ukrainian impressionists. At the age of 8, he entered an art school in the small town of Bila-Tserkov and started his journey as an artist to join the Art Academy of Ukraine. At the age of 14, being under pressure from his musical family, he decided to take a musical path. He studied at the Music College of Zhytomyr, the Music Academy of Kharkiv and the National Conservatory of Ukraine in Kyiv with the principal in classical performance—double bass. But at the same time, he continued studying painting. In 1994, he moved his family to the United States due to the unstable situation in Ukraine. He resides and works in Baltimore, MD.
Alex Eisenzopf clyde, nc
Aserial sketcher growing up, Alex Eisenzopf got his first formal instruction at a local community college, eventually transferring to Pratt Institute in New York City. The atmosphere there was vibrant and competitive with a serious, international student body.
But the money soon ran out. He transferred to Vassar, concentrating on philosophy and fine art. The studio art program there was much less competitive but Vassar’s art history department and art collection were first-rate. He learned much about composition, if not how to apply paint to canvas.
Eisenzopf spent most of the years since college working in commercial art and illustration and traveled extensively in Asia and Europe overseeing product design and development for major corporate clients. Now a full-time artist, Eisenzopf has spent the last few years renewing his drawing skills, further developing his pastel style and technique and attending plein air events. He lives with his artist wife Rokhaya Waring in the Smoky Mountains of North Carolina.
Martin Geiger
Martin Geiger was born in January 1997 in Charlottesville, VA. He received an undergraduate certificate at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts in Philadelphia and has been living in Staunton, VA since graduation. As the son of two oil painters, oil paint was always the artist’s preferred medium, although drawing has become an indispensable companion as well.
To Geiger, the world itself seems almost like an immense playground of a kind. Everything in his surroundings feels and looks intensely interesting at all times. It seems always to be right on the cusp of revealing itself, somewhat like a piece of music leading up to a crescendo. It’s clear that there is something very important just beneath the surface for the artist and making art is his best attempt at excavating these ever-present patterns and showing them to the world.
This nonstop sense of being called by reality means that the subject of his works vary widely from figure compositions to complex architecture to landscape, but the work itself generally gravitates towards light, space and design. These formal adjectives seem to most closely correlate with what Geiger wishes to communicate about the playground of life.
Sam Allerton Green
Providence, ri
“Igrew up in Providence, RI, and studied painting at the Maryland Institute College of Art and at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts. I have been an Artist in Residence at numerous residencies around the country. I paint often, both inside and outside. Much of my work is done en plein air, on site, in a single session. This forces me to focus on capturing what it feels like to be there, rather than simply replicating what I see. I spend so much of my time trying to swindle the natural world into showing me what is most important. Some days I’m convinced that observing this earth in the snow, rain, late at night or early in the morning will reveal something new to me, that if I park my easel in blazing sun just steps away from a shady grove, I will see something else, something more, and I’ll be ready to record it, brush in hand, like I am some paparazzi for mother earth.”
Neal Hughes
Agraduate of The Philadelphia College of Art (now University of the Arts), Neal Hughes has been painting professionally for over 40 years. He began his career as an illustrator, developing his skills in commercial art before making the transition to fine art, which has always been his true passion. Neal is a Fellow of the American Society of Marine Artists, a signature member of the American Impressionist Society, Oil Painters of America and the National Oil & Acrylic Painters Society, and is also a member of the Salmagundi Club and the Mid Atlantic Plein Air Painters Association. Included in the permanent collection of the New Britain Museum of American Art, Neal’s work has also been accepted into numerous juried exhibitions including the national exhibitions of the American Impressionist Society, Oil Painters of America, American Society of Marine Artists and the Portrait Society of America. His numerous awards include a Gold Medal from Oil Painters of America, Awards of Excellence from the American Impressionist Society and Best of Show from the National Oil & Acrylic Painters Society.
While competing in plein air events, Neal has received Best of Show awards at the Olmsted Plein Air Invitational, Cape Ann Plein Air, Paint Grand Traverse and others. He has also been honored with Artists Choice awards at Plein Air Easton, Paint Grand Traverse, Cape Ann Plein Air, Mountain Maryland, En Plein Air Texas, Lighthouse Art Center Plein Air Competition, Annapolis Plein Air competition and Door County Plein Air competition.
Neal and his wife, Betsy, currently reside in the historic town of Medford, New Jersey. They have four adult children and 17 grandchildren.
Fred Jackson
Fred Jackson has sketched the outdoor landscape since a young age with his father, an artist. “Some dads play catch with their sons, my dad took me outdoors to draw.”
Fred’s interest in art and nature guided him to the design field of landscape architecture, where for 30 years he practiced as a landscape architect. Fred now pursues painting full-time. Fred began oil painting about 10 years ago with a desire to explore a personal appreciation of the landscape and creative process. Fred participates in many prestigious national Plein Air Events across the country, including Wayne Plein Air, Gloucester Invitational Plein Air, Plein Air Easton, Door County Invitational, Paint Annapolis, The Olmsted Invitational Plein Air Atlanta, The Adirondack Plein Air and may others. He does about eight plein air events a year. He has gallery representation at The Square Pear Gallery, Kennett Square, PA; Bryan Gallery, Jeffersonville and Stowe, VT.; The Gallery at Mad River Valley Arts, Waitsfield VT; and Church Street Gallery, West Chester, PA.
“As a plein air painter, I am most inspired by the felt moods and patterns found in the natural and built landscapes. My painting style is loose, bold and expressive. I like to start with thin washes of dark or bright transparent colors, as the composition develops, I apply opaque thick paint with large brushes and pallet knives. My painting process is not formulaic; I prefer to work intuitively and improvisational. This keeps my creative process challenging and fun, and I like to see that energy come through in my paintings.”
Tim Kelly
baltimore, md
Tim Kelly, a lifelong Baltimore area resident, earned his B.A. from Maryland Institute, College of Art in 1992. A freelance illustration career followed for the next 10 years. Then a career shift took Tim into tractor trailer driving, something he still does. About 15 years ago, his artistic interests were revived by plein air painting. He has been an avid practitioner ever since, participates in several plein air events each year and has won a number of awards. Recent first place awards include Olmsted in 2020, the 15th Art Renewal Center Salon (plein air category) and Easton in 2021. Tim’s paintings tend to center on observational fidelity, with urban and water scenes being frequent subjects. He is a member of the Portrait Society of America, the Mid Atlantic Plein Air Painter’s Association and has artwork in Crystal Moll Gallery in Baltimore, MD and Ken Knowles Gallery in Rockport, MA. timkellybal.com
Rusty Kinnunen
Rusty Kinnunen studied painting at Massachusetts College of Art and Design, graduating in 2004 with a BFA. Later, facing a challenge that many struggling artists face with a lack of studio and time, with a full-time job and a young family, Rusty turned to plein air painting to maintain his creativity, painting along the coast in the early mornings before work and exhibiting his work at a local co-op gallery. This led to creating an art business in 2012 with his wife, Rusty & Ingrid Screen Prints, which they have grown into a successful printmaking gallery in Rockport, MA.
While much of his art practice is the slow, process-oriented work of hand-made silkscreen prints, he has continually returned to the “all at once” challenge of plein air painting throughout his career. Beyond just the enjoyment of exploring the outdoors, the appeal of plein air painting for him is an intuitive connection to a moment in time and to a particular point of view.
His subject matter includes everyday scenes around coastal Cape Ann, as well as scenes around the home. When painting, he looks for interesting light, geometry and a hint of a story. Light motivates the scene, livens the colors and sets the moment in time. Geometry refers to finding interesting shapes in a scene as well as an interesting composition. Most often the narrative element is evidence of time passing, or something that people have left behind, inviting the viewer to contemplate the story of the scene.
His preferred medium is gouache on paper for the simplicity of set up, variety of textures and the way it encourages efficient brush work.
Christine Lashley reston,
Christine is an American artist known for her colorful and dramatic oils. Christine has been involved in the arts all her life, with early years sketching outdoors and watching her mother and grandmother create sculpture. She spent several years in the high fashion world of Europe, and then worked in graphic design and creating murals. She began painting professionally with watercolors but moved to oils in 2009. Most of Christine’s art ideas are gathered by painting outdoors (plein air). The beauty of a moment held in memory and fusing reality and the abstract are key elements of her style.
With a BFA from Washington University in St. Louis and prior study at the Sorbonne and Parsons in Paris, Christine continued her art education with workshops from prominent artists. Her awards include Best of Show at Plein Air Telluride, Bath County and En Plein Air Texas. Other awards include Second Place at Plein Air Easton (2024); Best Rockport Award (2023) and Best Seascape Award (2024) at Cape Ann Plein Air; and numerous Oil Painter’s of America awards. She has taught workshops and classes for 30 years.
Carolyn Lindsey
cuervo, nm
Carolyn Lindsey, a resident of Cuervo, NM, creates paintings in oil, oil pastel and watercolor using the people and places in the area as subject matter. Painting from life, she feels, is paramount in the understanding and use of color. The point at which you leave the subject matter and allow the painting to dictate its own ending is important in completing a successful original work of art. Creating art is a continual process of learning, with many ways to achieve success.
Carolyn received her MFA in painting and drawing from Texas Women’s University in Denton, Texas. She has participated in and won awards in numerous regional and national juried shows. As a recent participant in Plein Air Southwest 2024, she received the architecture award, and as participant in 2023 at EnPleinAirTEXAS, she received the Ken Landon Water Lily Award. She was awarded the JFM Enterprises Award of Distinction at the 2023 American Impressionist Annual National Juried Show, and the Art of the West Award of Excellence in 2021 at the National AIS show. A member of Plein Air Painters of New Mexico, she received Best of Show at the 2024 Winter Light Small Works Show in 2022, Best of Show at the Annual Juried show, the Artist Member Award of Excellence in 2023, Best Figurative and Artist’s Choice Award in 2020, and 2019 Best of Artist Member Award at its national shows. She was awarded the Artistic Excellence Award at the 2019 Wild Rivers Plein Air Festival, as well as the Artist Choice Award and the Wild Rivers Recreation Award. She is a signature member of American Impressionist Society and Oil Painters of America.
David Lussier
“Iam a painter in the purist sense of the word and my vision for my subject is truthful and from the heart. There is a dialogue that takes place between myself and my subject matter as I apply paint to canvas. I believe that by painting a thing as simply as possible, you can get to the spirit of it, and then subject and artist reveal themselves to each other. When I feel satisfied, I put the brushes down and hope that the viewer will feel satisfied, too.”
David Lussier is an award-winning contemporary impressionist and nationally recognized plein air painter and workshop instructor. He is a painter in the purist sense of the word. In his poetic and intimate oil landscapes, he strives to capture the essence and sense of place of his subject matter. His use of bold, broad brushwork brings the surfaces to life and begs the viewer to return for a second look. As a commercially trained illustrator, he quickly realized that his passion was in the fine arts and he changed careers. His work has received more than 75 prizes and is in numerous private and corporate collections throughout the United States and abroad. His paintings have been featured in many art journals and he is a professional member of some of the finest art associations and groups in the country. David is also an official U.S. Open artist for the United States Golf Association. Four of his paintings hang in the permanent collection of the USGA Museum in Far Hills, New Jersey, and most recently his two paintings of the iconic and famous number two course at Pinehurst Resort were installed at the USGA’s new campus at Golf House in Pinehurst, North Carolina.
Dylan McKnight
Dylan McKnight is a distinguished New England-based artist recognized for his impressionistic paintings that vividly capture the essence of the region’s landscape and its people. The artistic journey of this 2002 BFA graduate of the Lyme Academy of Fine Arts (Old Lyme, CT) has encompassed drawing, oil painting, printmaking and sculpture.
After a hiatus from art making to raise a family and pursue a successful career in technology, McKnight recently returned to painting with a renewed perspective, enriched by life’s experiences. Currently focusing on watercolor, with a loose and expressive style, he embraces the medium’s spontaneity to create a dynamic interplay of pigments, each revealing their unique character on paper. Using a limited palette, his refined brushwork, strong foundational drawing and careful depiction of light and shadow seek to portray the very essence of his subjects.
McKnight’s paintings have been exhibited and collected across the nation, gaining acclaim through prestigious organizations such as the International Watermedia Exhibition in Houston, the American Impressionist Society, the American Watercolor Society and Cape Ann Plein Air. He currently holds the position of Vice President at the New England Watercolor Society, contributing to the promotion and appreciation of water-based media throughout the region.
Lynn Mehta
stePhenson, va
Known for her fluid and expressive oil paintings, Lynn Mehta captures the essence of her subjects through a rich interplay of color and texture. Inspired by the world around her, she finds beauty in both the ordinary and extraordinary, drawing on elements like weathered farm buildings, old boats, vibrant flowers and natural landscapes to create visual stories. For Lynn, painting is a journey. She focuses on color, composition and the movement of light to express her connection to the world. Her paintings, rich in texture and depth, blend spontaneity with control, captivating viewers both up close and from afar.
An award-winning Virginia-based artist, Lynn Mehta grew up on the shores of the Pacific Ocean in California where her passion for painting began. Encouraged by her mother, an artist herself, Lynn pursued her talents early, earning an art degree from San Diego State University. Her love of the outdoors and travel, shaped by childhood experiences on the beach, backpacking trips and living in India, continues to inspire her work.
Lynn is a Signature Member of the American Impressionist Society and the American Society of Marine Artists. Her work is featured in galleries, private and public collections, books and magazines worldwide, including the Maryhill Museum of Art in Washington, the National Institutes of Health and Acadia National Park Artists-in-Residency.
Charles Newman
haddon townshiP, nJ
Charles Newman received his master’s degree in fine art from the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts in 2008, focusing on plein air painting. Charles currently resides in Haddon Township, NJ and does en plein air painting around his neighborhood, in Philadelphia and wherever else he goes. He is also an accomplished craftsman and currently works at Provenance in Philadelphia, PA, specializing in architectural salvage materials and antiques. He is known for his hand-crafted frames made from salvaged wood, and doing custom home restorations. Charles has received numerous awards from plein air festivals along the East Coast, and was featured in the August/September 2018 issue of PleinAir Magazine, and Southwest Art Magazine for the “Five Artists to Watch.” He was also awarded First Place overall for the 2022 Cape Ann Plein Air Festival, 2023 Plein Air Easton, 2023 Plein Air in the Smokies and the Oil Painters of America’s 2022 Eastern Regional Exhibition.
“I
am an extremely left-brained being, submerged in a right-brained environment. My fascination with art has to do with brain science and how the brain assimilates massive amounts of visual information and translates it into a feeling or an impression in the blink of an eye. It’s fascinating. For me, painting is this exact concept in slow motion. It’s about symbolism and the challenge of how few brushstrokes I can get away with to capture an impression. The challenge is not to lose this glimpse, this feeling, this experience, in the translation. The challenge is to see what I can get away with. I wish it were more profound than that, but alas, I am left-brained…”
Crista Pisano
Born and raised in northern New Jersey, Crista began painting in oils in 1989 under the instruction of John Phillip Osborne at the Ridgewood Art Institute in Ridgewood, NJ. She graduated from the Lyme Academy College of Fine Arts in 2000, receiving a bachelor’s degree in fine arts painting, and in 2003, received a master’s degree in fine arts painting from the New York Academy Graduate School of Figurative Art. Crista paints landscapes mostly en plein air as well as in her studio in Nyack, NY, and is known for painting on a small scale. Influenced by the Hudson River School, she also loves the Macchiaioli, a group of Italian painters active in Tuscany in the second half of the 19th century. Some of her favorite artists are George Inness, Jean-Baptiste Camille Corot, Martin Johnson Heade and Edward Lear.
Aside from participating in various plein air events throughout the year, she exhibits throughout New England and New York. She has received numerous awards and honors, including Best in Show at the Adirondack Plein Air Festival in both 2012 and 2014. Crista also won Honorable Mention at Plein Air Easton in 2015 and 2016 as well as Best Nocturne 2019. She won three awards in 2019 at Plein Air Annapolis, including second place overall and the Stobart Foundation Award at The Mystic Seaport International Marine exhibition in 2019. PleinAir Magazine had included Crista as one of its featured artists in its December/January 2016 issue. Crista currently lives and works in the Hudson River town of Nyack, NY. She is a member of Oil Painters of America and is represented by the Trippe Gallery in Easton, MD; the Sylvan Gallery in Wiscassett, ME; and the Box Heart Gallery in Pittsburgh, PA.
Antwan Ramar
Antwan started his career as a caricaturist. Learning the art of portraiture as an adolescent, he put himself through art school drawing people face-to-face. Antwan studied art in Southern California in a classical atelier. Under teachers with extensive experience in their fields, Antwan’s aspirations were leading him toward concept art for film and TV. His classes were rich with fundamental drawing and painting, giving him a strong understanding of the disciplines of representationalism. After several years of working as a professional commercial artist for companies such as Royal Caribbean Cruises, Universal Studios and Pepsi, Antwan began to oil paint on location while hiking and traveling. Over time, Antwan became acquainted with the wonderful plein air community and was inspired to begin painting full time in 2016. Originally from rural Wisconsin, Antwan has always been inspired by nature’s beauty and relishes the time on location, sketching and observing the essence of the moment.
Antwan is a full-time painter, winning numerous awards as a Signature Member of The Oil Painters of America and the American Impressionist Society, splitting his time between the studio painting for galleries and plein air events around the country. He loves to paint during his extensive travels, but spends most of his time in his studio in central Florida.
Kari Ganoung Ruiz
Being raised at the edge of the Finger Lakes National Forest in Central New York State set the stage for Kari’s deep connection to the natural landscape. After receiving a degree in fine art, she worked as a faux finisher, muralist and owned a picture framing studio and boutique gallery with her husband Diego, a stereo photographer, wood and glass artist. In 2014, Kari began to focus on painting outside, “en plein air,” feeling the need to learn about light and shadow directly from the natural world. Based in Interlaken, NY, she now travels the country painting her experiences. Whether having a stare down with a wolf in Yellowstone, rolling down the palm tree- and sea grape-lined A1A in Florida or sleeping through a tornado in Missouri, it’s always an adventure!
Recent awards include Grand Prize—Lighthouse Plein Air Festival in Florida 2024, Best Use of Light—Wayne Plein Air in Pennsylvania 2024, Best in Art and Architecture—Cape Ann Plein Air in Massachusetts 2024, Best in Show—Shadows on the Teche in Louisiana 2023, Best in Show—Paint Grand Traverse in Michigan 2023 and 2022. Kari’s work is held in public and private collections across the United States, most recently added to the collections of the Bureau of Land Management in Colorado and The City of Gloucester in Massachusetts.
Mark Shasha
Mark Shasha is an award-winning American artist, author and educator. He paints at many invitational plein air events around the country and exhibits widely. Shasha grew up on the Connecticut coast with a love of the sea. Most of his works are explorations of natural light and textures of the landscape from expansive coastal vistas to intimate harbors using traditional techniques of 19th and 20th century masters.
A lifelong artist and graduate of the Rhode Island School of Design, Shasha spent his early years as a notable children’s book author and illustrator. Today he is a Signature Member of The Oil Painters of America, The American Society of Marine Artists and The Laguna Plein Air Painters Association and is an elected member of the Guild of Boston Artists, Rockport Art Association and North Shore Arts Association. His popular videos, workshops and presentations at major conventions have helped students understand the fundamental elements of painting light and texture in nature. When not painting, Mark is an actor and singer, having played roles as broad as Atticus Finch to Willy Wonka. His home and studio are in Swampscott, MA.
Robert Simone
st. Petersburg, fl
Artist Robert J. Simone, of St. Petersburg, FL insists that good things happen when you paint! “I really believe that,” he says. “I started taking classes and workshops when I was in my 40s. I kept my head down and kept painting. I’m still pinching myself over the awards and recognition that have come my way.”
Among the accolades Robert has received are the Grand Prize at Plein Air Easton 2024, First Prize in the Quickpaint at Olmsted Plein Air 2024, Best Landscape at NOAPS Best of America Small Works Exhibition 2023 and Best Marine/Seascape at OPA Eastern Regional 2023. He is also a Signature Member of Oil Painters of America (OPA), National Oil and Acrylics Painters Society (NOAPS) and American Society of Marine Artists (ASMA).
Richard Sneary
kansas city, mo
Aresident of Kansas City, MO, Richard Sneary started painting as a water colorist, primarily en plein air in 2011, after 40 years as an architect, architectural illustrator and educator. He is a Signature Member of the American Watercolor Society, National Watercolor Society, American Impressionists Society, Missouri and Kansas Watercolor Society, and the Outdoor Painters Society, and President Emeritus of The American Society of Architectural Illustrators (ASAI), Faculty at the University of Kansas Department of Architecture 1977–1985, Faculty Artist at the 11th Annual Plein Air Convention & Expo 2024 and The Fifth Annual Plein Air Convention & Expo 2016, and Faculty Artist at Streamline’s Third Annual Watercolor Live 2023. He has been the Featured Artist in PleinAir Magazine, “Playing With in the Lines,” February/March 2022; Special Feature in PleinAir Magazine, “Deep in the Heart of West Texas,” June/July 2020; Featured Artist in PleinAir Magazine, August/September 2014; Best Overall Watercolor for the Apr/May Plein Air Salon Competition. Streamline Publishing Paint Tube video, Watercolor Mastery Light & Shadow, 2024.
Recent awards include Grand Prize at Lighthouse Plein AIr 2022 and Artists Choice in 2024; Second Place at Paint Annapolis 2022 and Estes Valley Plein Air 2022 & 2023; Body of Work at En Plein Air Texas 2021, Best of Show at Stems Plein Air 2020 & 2011; Second Place Artists Choice at Telluride 2018. Richard is represented by Art Gallery Prudencia, San Antonio, TX and McBride Galley, Annapolis, MD.
Jeff Steiner
minneaPolis, mn
In Jeff’s career as an architect, he began his creative process with quick ink and marker sketches, learning to express design concepts with simple graphic images. This evolved into a fascination for painting with the immediacy and expressive opportunities of watercolor. Today, he quickly captures the essence and mood of street and landscape scenes with a bold, impressionistic approach.
Moving to a downtown Minneapolis condo in early 2020 facilitated his love of plein air, riding his scooter exploring and painting street scenes. He has combined his love of travel and painting by entering plein air competitions around the country, winning numerous awards along the way.
Nancy Tankersley
Nancy Tankersley began her career as a portraitist but entered the gallery scene with figurative paintings of people at work and at leisure. Currently as she searches for the unpredictable, Tankersley moves between landscape, figures and still life. Incorporating non-traditional tools, supports and technologies for her paintings, she remains faithful to her impressionistic style.
Active in the current plein air movement, and a founder of Plein Air Easton, she travels worldwide participating in competitions, judging and teaching. In 2018, 2019 and 2020, she was invited to be an instructor and demonstrator at the Plein Air Convention in Santa Fe and released two instructional videos with Lilliedahl Videos. In 2016 and 2017, she was invited to exhibit at the prestigious Masters Exhibition at the Salmagundi Club in NYC. Recent honors include Best of Show at Parrsboro, Nova Scotia International Plein Air 2018, Best of Show at the Lighthouse Plein Air Festival 2017 and the Dickinson Award for Best Painting by a Signature Member of the American Impressionist Society 2016 Annual Juried Exhibit. In 2019, she was selected to be the Featured Artist at the 49th Waterfowl Festival in Easton, MD. In 2024, she was honored to be the judge at the 20th Anniversary of Plein Air Easton.
She is a Signature Member of the American Impressionist Society, the American Society for Marine Art and the Mid-Atlantic Plein Air Painters, and is juried at the Washington Society for Landscape Painters. She artist mentors and teaches workshops and also sponsors workshops by nationally known painters.
George Van Hook
George Van Hook was born and raised in Abington, PA. He began painting early and was able to participate in the vibrant artistic culture of the region. George spent summers painting in the mid-coast area of Rockport Harbor, and on North Haven Island where his wife’s property is adjacent to the famous Boston artist Frank Benson.
Van Hook spent summers during high school filmmaking throughout France and England, allowing him to visit great museums and increase his commitment to become a professional artist. Following college, he left for Paris and spent a year traveling through Europe. George returned to the East Coast, settling in Cambridge, NY, a beautiful 19th century village in the Battenkill River Valley.
Van Hook thinks of his paintings as a visual response to the selected environment: landscape, figure or still life. His paintings are a marriage of external and internal forces—what emerges on the canvas is a reflection of both the beauty of the world and the artist’s most inner response.
Van Hook, a nationally recognized artist, has won plein air competitions and awards around the country. George teaches plein air workshops around the country.
Richie Vios
Born and raised in Cebu City, Philippines, surrounded by the influence of an artistic family, Richie ventured into academia after earning a bachelor’s degree in architecture in 1995, becoming a university faculty member. In 2005, Richie sought fresh prospects and made the move to America, working as an architectural designer in Clearwater, FL, for six years. Upon his return to the Philippines in 2010, he resumed his architectural practice with a vision to harmonize Western architectural principles with Southeast Asian aesthetics. During his architectural practice in the Philippines, Richie dedicated his spare time over the next seven years to honing his watercolor painting skills, a passion that now defines his artistic identity. Reuniting with his family in Texas in 2018, Richie embarked on a new chapter as a watercolor impressionist and plein air artist, reigniting his pursuit of the American dream. Presently residing in Austin, TX, Richie actively participates in plein air events nationwide and leads watercolor workshops to share his expertise and inspire fellow artists.
Rokhaya Waring
clyde, nc
“Icarry a sketchbook everywhere I go, which keeps me loose and ready to jot down the seeds for larger works. I’m drawn to color and pattern, such as boats in a harbor, fields of flowers or moving clouds. Rather than a single focal point, I often try to depict intangibles such as atmosphere, harmony and movement. I feel it’s important to fall in love with one’s subject. A painter should reveal to the viewer something that is connected to them, even if small or simple.
“After graduating from Princeton with a BA in art history/visual arts, I spent the summer painting in Provence, my home for the next 20 years. Hay rolls, sunflower and poppy fields were some of my favorite subjects. In 2008, I moved back to the Cape Ann of my childhood, and Gloucester and its harbor captured my heart. I’ve also spent time painting in other parts of the United States, Paris, Israel and Tahiti. I now live in the Smoky Mountains with my husband, artist Alex Eisenzopf, and our two whippets.”
Waring has exhibited in over 200 solo, group, invitational and juried shows and plein air events in the U.S. and France and has collected numerous awards—particularly in Quick Draws, which ties in with her love of alla prima painting. Waring is featured in 100 Artists of New England and The American Flag in Contemporary Art. rokhaya.com
Durre Waseem corona, ca
“I
grew up in a large family that loved to draw and color, with some taking art as a career. My formal art training started when I took art in college then earned a master’s degree from Punjab University, where I taught painting and art history for the next seven years and later three at a girls college. It was during my teaching years that I explored myself as an artist with better understanding of seeing and omitting. I enjoy the process of painting in several mediums like oil, water and pastels, etc. Like the preferred medium, my choice of subject matter also has a wide range. I guess I’d rather be a Jack-of-all-trades than to be a master.”
Stewart White
Stewart White is a watercolorist from Baltimore, MD. He is one of the rare plein air painters using the medium of watercolor. His background in architectural illustration adds to his skill set and his paintings reflect his knowledge of good design. Stewart’s paintings have the pleasing combination of good structure with a painterly style. He is a transparent watercolorist in the purest tradition of watercolor painters. Whereas watercolor expresses its nature as fluid, oil paint is stiff and seems to want to be expressed in a thick and buttery way.
He studied at the Pratt Institute in Brooklyn and after serving three years in the U.S. Army, he returned to graduate from UC Berkeley with a BFA. He works as an architectural illustrator and designer. His watercolors both in his architecture illustrations and in painting competitions have won him many awards. In June 2009, he was invited to teach a workshop in Paris on his techniques for architectural watercolors to an organization of architects. He continues to teach in Paris every other year.
Stewart is President of the Mid-Atlantic Plein-Air Painters Association (MAPAPA). He exhibits his paintings in juried and gallery exhibitions throughout the U.S. He is the Grand Prize winner of the prestigious Easton Plein Air Festival (2009) and PleinAir Magazine’s Grand Prize Salon. He was a featured artist in McBride Gallery’s June 2009 exhibit, Rising Stars: 10 Artists to Watch. Stewart is a member of the American Impressionists Society(AIS), a Signature Member of the National Watercolor Society (NWS), a signature member of The American Watercolor Society (AWS) and Past President (2012) of The American Society of Architectural Illustrators (ASAI).
Charles H. Shurcliff
September 18, 1943 – March 10, 2025
“Painting has little to do with techniques and everything to do with seeing. Or, more precisely, seeing what you see. Most of the fun comes at the start, while the canvas is still largely bare and full of promise. You are making major decisions every few seconds, first in deciphering and decoding, then in simplifying and translating, both sides of your brain at full bore. Now you are seeing the kind of stuff you didn’t see earlier, properties rather than entities. If you look around you’ll find the world transfigured and paintable.
It is suddenly all about colors and relations and gestures, and all infused with importance and meaning – what it means, you can’t quite say, but capturing it assumes an urgency. Before you know it, the painting starts to look pretty much complete, the acrylic paints on the palette have by now begun to harden in the sun, the sun has moved, the shadows changed, and you discover that you have been standing in one fixed position for far too long, perhaps an hour or even two, though any sense of time is long gone and so, too, any sense of self. There is no self: you find that you have somehow become what you paint, part and particle of all you see.”
- CharlieShurcliff
