WAYNE >> One of the most sought-after national juried festival competitions of plein-air landscape paintings, hosted by the Wayne Art Center, will take place from May 8-13 as artists paint in the Delaware Valley. The 11th Annual Wayne Plein Air Festival features 32 nationally distinguished artists who will create 250-plus landscapes that will be available at the Collectors’ Soiree and Sale on Saturday, May 13, from 6-10 p.m. and for the duration of the exhibition through June 24th, 2017.
The Plein Air Festival will begin with a private Artist and Sponsor Welcome Dinner at a local patron’s farm on Sunday, May 7, 2017. Artists arrive with blank canvases, which will be stamped that late afternoon to ensure that all work is completely executed during the festival. Then they will be ready to begin the challenge of executing a brand new body of work in just 6 days, which will then hang in the Wayne Art Center’s state-of-the-art Davenport and Vidinghoff Galleries.
Tickets for the May 13 collectors’ soiree can be purchased at www.waynepleinair.org. The exhibition is free and open to the public May 15 through June 24.
The Wayne Plein Air Festival is an exciting opportunity to bring valued talent to our community. Many of the artists come from other regions stretching up and down the East Coast and Midwest and West. This year, with the growing awareness of the Wayne Art Center Plein Air Festival, there has been an increase in the number of applicants and the festival is attracting artists from as far away as California. Out of town artists will be housed by committee members and other gracious patron families in the community for the duration of the festival.
Don Demers will jury the artists and awards for the 11th plein air anniversary. Demers was educated at the School of the Worcester Art Museum, Worcester, MA, and the Massachusetts College of Art in Boston, MA. His professional career began as an illustrator and expanded into the field of fine art. His illustrations have graced many book covers and national publications such as Reader’s Digest, Sail Magazine, Field & Stream, Sports Afield, Yankee, and National Geographic. His paintings have been featured in publications including American Artist Magazine, Artist Magazine, Plein Air Magazine, Fine Art Connoisseur, Art and Antiques, Yachting Magazine and several other noteworthy publications.
A Fellow of the American Society of Marine Artists, Demers is an elected member of the Guild of Boston Artists, an elected member of the California Art Club, and a signature member of PAPA (Plein Air Painters of American). Demers has won a record number of awards for his commercial and fine art paintings on both the east and west coasts.
Demers has selected artists from across the country to compete in the Wayne Art Center Plein Air Festival. The artists will paint the luscious landscapes and beautiful architecture of the Delaware Valley. Demers will join us in Wayne to select awards for paintings and offer a painting lecture. Demers will also teach a 3-day, plein air painting workshop following the opening of the 2017 exhibition. Registration for the workshop can be made at www.waynepleinair.org or by calling 610-688-3553.
Festival artists are directed to paint within 25 miles of Wayne during the first four days of the competition. A combination of pastoral scenes from nearby rural areas and parks as well as quaint scenes from historic Main Line neighborhoods will make for a pleasing variety of works that reflect the character of our area. On Friday, May 12, the painters will venture to Valley Forge Park and into Philadelphia to capture notable downtown scenes in Center City. On Saturday, May 13, Wayne becomes the central spot for artists and community participates to paint on the final day of the festival. Artists can be seen capturing everyday life from early morning until 1 p.m.
To honor past award winners, Wayne Art Center has invited ten previously awarded artists to paint alongside the juried artists during the festival.
The Wayne Art Center’s financial efforts are underwritten by several local major sponsors and private patrons and attendees who help raise funds for the 2017 Wayne Art Center Plein Air Festival that benefit Wayne Art Center’s educational, outreach and exhibition programs. Our Presenting Sponsor is West Laurel Hill Cemetery and Funeral Home, Major Sponsors, First Priority Bank, Beneficial Bank and many other generous local business sponsors and patrons
During the 2017 Wayne Art Center Plein Air Festival, the annual Reflections Thru The Lens, an exhibition of photography will be on exhibition in the Ethel Sergeant Clark Smith Gallery. Photographers will submit photographs of landscapes. Awards will be presented at the opening on Thursday, May 18, from 5-7pm. The reception is free and open to the public. The exhibition will run from May 15 through June 24, 2017.
The 2017 Plein Air Artists are:
Paul Bachem (Locust Valley, NY)
Bruno Baran (Nottingham, MD)D. Eleinne Basa (Jackson, NJ)
Joshua Been (Salida, CO)Robert Bohne (Brookhaven, PA)
Michele Byrne (Wyomissing Hills, PA)
John Caggiano (Rockport, MA)Arcenio M. Campos (Philadelphia, PA)
Valerie Craig (Villanova, PA)Chris Dixon (Lakeville, CT)
Roberta Goschke (Waldoboro, ME)
Ray Hassard (Cincinnati, OH)Jennifer Holmes (Chester, CT)
Neal Hughes (Moorestown, NJ)Charlie Hunter (Bellows Falls, VT)
Tim Kelly (Baltimore, MD)Allen A. Kriegshauser (Kirkwood, MO)
Patrick Lee (Pittsburgh, PA)Christopher Leeper (Canfield, OH)
Chuck Marshall (Wilmington, OH)
Jane McGraw-Teubner (East Northport, NY)
Patrick Meehan (Annapolis, MD)Alison Leigh Menke (Silver Spring, MD)
Kathie Odom (Knoxville, TN)Elise Phillips (Elverson, PA)
Richard Sneary (Kansas City, MO)
Jonathan Stasko (Sharon Spings, NY)
R. Gregory Summers (Overland Park, KS)
Anthony Watkins (Bradley, ME)Stewart White (Baltimore, MD)
Tara Will (Hampstead, MD)Peter Yesis (Searsport, ME)
For more information, call 610-688-3553 or visit the website at wayneart.org.
