Plein Air Extraordinaire

What happens when you're in Provence for a glorious week of painting and pleasure, and instead of waking up to this in the morning ...




 ... you get this?


 For one of us, who clearly suffers from Seasonal Affect Disorder, even the slightest threat of rain will throw me into a mild depression.  In fact, although I was lucky enough to spend a few extra days (OK Meg, I know, it was closer to a week!) in Provence after our wonderful artists' workshop last month, I was not pleased when, uncharacteristically for this time of year, the heavens opened up and it rained off and on for three days.

I'm not the only one who was in a funk about it.  When it rains in Provence, it automatically becomes the hot topic of conversation everywhere you go, with people buzzing about, saying things like:  "This is totally ridiculous! It never rains at this time of year!" or,  "This is a completely unusual year because it didn't rain all winter"  or, "It's good for the soil but bad for the soul" or, "The truffle season will be ruined if it rains this month."  You get the idea!  Nobody likes it and everyone talks about it and complains about it ... except for one unique and determined genre of person:  The Plein Air Artist!


For plein air artists, the cloudy skies are just another excuse to get out there with paints, boots and a windbreaker to explore the dramatic effect of clouds, contrasts and ever changing light.

Bill Davidson, Plein Air Painter Extraordinaire

And for this plein air artists, in particular, nothing could hold him back from the pure thrill of painting in the rain, and catching that fleeting light that is so dramatic and different, even when it means a soaking wet palette and a rain drenched canvas.  Bill Davidson couldn't get enough of it.

As a fan of his work, it only strengthened my appreciation of what it takes to be a dedicated plein air painter.

When he showed me the oil sketch he had done of the town of Goult, in the Luberon Valley (above), he said his canvas had been so wet, he had to stop painting. "Aaah, it was fabulous!" he gushed.

One of my favorite paintings is one he did from a sketch along a country road, when he was simultaneously dodging puddles and raindrops to produce a little masterpiece, called Provence Mood:

The inspiration for it was pretty dramatic as well.

His first sketch of the town of Bonnieux was painted on a cloudy day, which was dramatic for photography, but not a happy place for a painting.

At my insistence, a a couple of days later, he went back and captured the sunny side of the village.

Sunny Bonnieux

 
Bill sketched all over the South of France and came up with a huge amount of inspiration and fodder for paintings that he will finish over time.  We're so lucky that he'll be bringing us some for our upcoming Bastille Day Show, on July 14th at Huff Harrington Fine Art.

We are excitedly pulling together all of our French inspired paintings for this show, which will feature some of the work done by our guest artists who attended Bill Davidson and Nancy Franke's wonderful workshops in Provence.  It's a new idea for us and I hope it will become a tradition ... just as our Bastille Day show is now a five year old tradition!  Luckily for the artists and the workshop, the weather cooperated nicely and nobody had to endure the raw elements that Bill Davidson encountered.  But even if it had rained in Provence, something tells me it wouldn't have stopped this wonderful breed of troopers called Plein Air Artists, who make a pact with nature, for better and for worse.  And I know for sure, it wouldn't have put a damper on the week we had together.

We hope you'll join us on Saturday, July 14th, rain or shine, for our Bastille Day Art Show and come meet some of our Plein Air Extraordinaire artists!

A bientot ...

Ta ta.

HH