Plein air art presentation and exhibit coming to Port Jervis library

In the 1800s Western art was dominated by a few salons and academies, and painting was taught according to tried and true formulas. But English painter John Constable advocated forgetting formulas and pursuing nature and personal vision. About the same time a group of painters outside Paris had a similar idea, and painting “en plein air” became all the rage. Although people had been painting outdoors since the caveman days, nobody had called it painting “en plein air” before.

Recently, plein air painting has become so popular, it’s been referred to as “the new golf.” The En Plein Air Celebration is sponsored by the River Valley Artists Guild and the Barryville Area Arts Association. A free reception will be at the Port Jervis Free Library Community Room on November 12 that will include an exhibit that traces the history of plein air painting through a series of prints. The display includes classic plein air scene as well as examples from the Impressionist, Barbizon, and Hudson River Schools.

Local expert and plein air painter Susan Miiller will give a brief presentation focused on the Hudson River School and Northeast Pennsylvania painters.

Also on display from now through November 26 are works by selected local plein air artists from the Plein Air on the Delaware event in Port Jervis including Robert Bradley, Jane Brennan, Mef Gannon, Gene Iovine, Susan Miiller, and Janet Poppendieck.