2nd Annual Plein Air Art Show and Sale
May 16 - 20, 2012
Aldridge Gardens invites you to a special event this spring that continues to show our commitment and support of art and artists at The Gardens and to bring a regionally-known event to our entire community. The Aldridge Gardens Second Annual Plein Air Art Show, Sale and Quick Draw on-site at Aldridge Gardens! This juried Plein Air Art Show will feature artists from all over the Southeast. The public is invited to watch them paint on-site as they capture directly onto their canvases the beauty of Aldridge Gardens and several surrounding private gardens in Birmingham. These talented artists will use the natural light and paint the landscape of Aldridge Gardens and these private gardens which will showcase the natural beauty and surroundings. Along with the final ‘Quick Draw’ event which will allow the public the opportunity to watch the artists paint on-site and allow them an opportunity to actually buy a ‘wet-paint’ painting directly off the artists’ easel, the public is invited to visit the Aldridge Gardens Gallery during the months of May and June as we feature artwork from each of the selected artists in a special Plein Air Art Show and Sale.
Plein Air, French for “open air,” is used to describe the act of painting outdoors. In the early 19th century paint manufacturers made available, for the first time, pre-mixed oil pigments in easily carried tubes. Armed with an easily transferable medium, painters took their newly minted paint tubes and easels outdoors. The ability to paint directly from nature opened the door to the Impressionist movement and Barbizon school.
Impressionist artists were interested in the influence of changing outdoor light on a color. Painting real life and naturalistic scenes, they focused on form as color that suggested light. Leaving behind formulas and static scenes, these plein air painters tested out the theory of trusting their eyes to portray the truth in nature.
Building on the work of the realists and impressionists, modern plein air artists are experiencing a renaissance. Aldridge Gardens is proud to partner with these artists as they draw their audience into a greater appreciation of the natural world.
Here are the dates and times for all the events related to the 2nd Annual Plein Air Art Show and Sale. Open to the public. Free Admission.
Wednesday, May 16, 10am - Artist Registration
Wednesday, May 16, noon-7pm - Artists will paint on site at Aldridge Gardens
Thursday, May 17, 9am-5pm - Artists will paint on site at Aldridge Gardens
Thursday, May 17, 6pm - Artists and the public are invited to attend an art reception
for one of the plein air artists, Janet Lucas, at the Loretta Goodwin Gallery
downtown.
Friday, May 18, 9am-5pm - Artists will paint at 2 private gardens in English Village
and Mountain Brook. CLOSED TO THE PUBLIC.
Saturday, May 19, 10am-6pm -ists will paint at Black Jack Equestrian Farms,
located off Derby Parkway and I-459
Sunday, May 20,1-3pm - Artists will paint at Aldridge Gardens' ‘Quick-Draw Paint
Out’ when the public can buy ‘wet paint’ artwork right off the artists' easels.
Sunday, May 20, 3pm-4pm - ‘Meet the Artists’ Reception at Aldridge Gardens
May 16-June 29, 8am-4pm weekdays - participating artists exhibit personal artwork (up to five paintings each) in the Kay and Eddie Aldridge Art and Historical Museum at Aldridge Gardens.
Artists Participating:
Gina Brown Glencoe, AL
Jane Bryant Lakeland, FL
Michael Davis Homewood, AL
Don Estes Hoover, AL
Dee Falls Birmingham, AL
Catherine Friend Birmingham, AL
Martha Fulghum Alabaster, AL
Sharon Gates Birmingham, AL
Julia Hamilton Birmingham, AL
Janet Lucas Birmingham, AL
Marie Miller Chattanooga, TN
Diane Gibson Newsome Birmingham, AL
David Nichols Birmingham, AL
Craig Reynolds Gadsden, AL
Robin Roberts Decatur, AL
Sandy Tilt Birmingham, AL
Dirk Walker Birmingham, AL
Katrina Weber Huntsville, AL
Elizabeth Wright Birmingham, AL
Libby Wright Birmingham, AL
Robin Wright Pelham, AL
Jurors
Birmingham Museum of Art
University Art Professor
Contact:
Debbie Bartoletti
Director of Marketing
Aldridge Gardens
3530 Lorna Road
Birmingham, AL 35216
Phone: 205.682.8019
Email: dbartoletti@aldridgegardens.com
