Plein Air Painting Demonstration with Roger Bansemer – “Wupatki Pueblo”

In this Plein Air Painting Demonstration done with acrylics, Roger Bansemer takes us on a journey to Arizona’s Wupatki National Monument, located near Flagstaff. This site is a collection of very old ruins that spreads across many miles of desert.  All of the pueblos within this area were built by the Anasazi and Sinagua Indians over 800 yrs ago. This site is wonderfully preserved and an excellent subject for painting. Included in this video is an interesting interview done by Roger’s Wife Sarah with a member of the Hopi nation about his heritage. Enjoy

Painting with Roger Bansemer – “Wupatki Pueblo” from Roger Bansemer on Vimeo.

Plein Air Painting Demo by Robert Lewis

This plein air painting demo is presented by award-winning plein air artist Robert Lewis. The demo takes place on a bluff over the Monterey Bay.

Plein Air Painting Demonstration – City Of Rocks – By Jo Castillo

About Jo

Jo Knoblock Castillo has always had an interest in art and working with her hands. Whether it was cooking, sewing or making gifts, she was happy to be “doing”. While living in Bolivia, she finally rediscovered her love of painting. Her interest is in landscapes and paintings that have connections to her life.

Jo works in most media, but has discovered she really enjoys the special luminosity of pastels. They are tactile, immediate and long lasting. Other than smudging if touched (they should be framed under glass), they are very durable. The colors are clear and vibrant. “I enjoy painting from life and use my own reference photos just as a reminder of shape or lighting,” says the artist.

Winters find Jo and Gene, her husband, living in Bastrop, Texas. It is near family and offers a mild climate and plenty of golf courses and opportunities to paint. Jo looks forward to plein air painting in New Mexico each summer. “It is a challenge to set up an easel and paint a scene in just a couple of hours,” Jo says, “The light is very fleeting and you have to get down large sections of light and dark very quickly to establish your painting. Weather doesn’t always cooperate and uninvited visitors like mosquitos or snakes are not uncommon.”

Please take a moment to visit Jo’s websites to learn more about her and to view more of her work:

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Tips For Painting Landscapes In Watercolor

One of the biggest challenges beginners face with any type of art, is the ability to really connect with the creativity that is inside of them. It’s difficult in the beginning to just let go and paint from your heart and soul. Your mind is being filled with techniques and systems for approaching painting, that may inhibit your creativity. Don’t get me wrong, painting techniques are essential to learning, but there should be a point where you begin to draw from your own creative imagination.

When painting a subject, whether it be a person, landscape, wildlife, etc., it is important that you first carefully study and observe your subject. You need to get intimate and personal with the subject you are painting. If you want to learn how to paint great landscapes, then you should spend time in and around the area that inspires you to paint. Only then can you really get a sense of what it is you are seeing, and how to re-create that scene on paper.

Before you even touch the paint though, head down to your location with only paper and pencils. One of the best ways to become closer to the scene you are painting, is to spend time there doing sketches. This will really force you to observe what you see and burn the image and the environment into your senses. You will be amazed at how much you learn about a scene by simply doing a few drawings.

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