oil painting demonstration
MORGAN SAMUEL PRICE
Getting to the Fun Part of Painting
Morgan Samuel Price knows that one of the benefits of having a substantial amount of painting experience is the opportunity to get beyond technique and spend more time looking, thinking, and enjoying every new challenge.
“T
his is the fun part of my career,” says Florida artist Morgan Samuel Price. “I get to do all the things I dreamed about when I was starting out, and it’s the time when I have enough experience as a painter and teacher that I can take on any challenge with fresh ideas and a sense of adventure. It’s as if I could jump off a bridge and have a good time deciding where I want to land. I can be more daring as a painter and more resourceful as a teacher. Unlike an older athlete with diminished strength, I have all the energy and direction to keep going.” Price’s comments give hope to every plein air painter who wonders where their journey will take them. Her experience offers encouragement to artists who join the community of outdoor painters after careers in other fields, as well as those who spend decades establishing themselves with events, workshops, societies, and exhibitions. “Wonderful things now happen because people have seen my work, taken a workshop, or watched me during a plein air festival,” she says. “It might be years after we met that someone will ask me to teach a workshop, paint a portrait, join their event, or judge an exhibition. “For example, I recently completed a commission from a collector who was interested in one of my award-winning paintings that had already been sold. They wanted a painting of essentially the same location in North Carolina. I was happy to return to the location, paint another interpretation, and add figures to the original composition using photographs of the collectors’ family members. They were delighted with the finished painting.” Price goes on, “One of the interesting things about that commission is that I emphasized the story of children playing near a rock slide andlake. People love to know the stories behind my choice of Rainbow Eucalyptus 2012, oil, 30 x 24 in. Collection the artist Plein air www.pleinairmagazine.com / December-January 2015
AAPA_pxx-xx_DemoProfile_Price_DecJan15.indd 53
53
11/11/14 12:56 PM