Author: Robert Lewis

Challenges. Life is filled with challenges. Plein air is, by definition, challenging. Who needs more challenges? If you are one of those who truly enjoys a challenge (and

The Legacy of “Visual Music” Henry Hensche was a pivotal American Impressionist and a teacher who spent over 50 years at the Cape School of Art demonstrating how

It’s not about painting to sell. If selling is your ambition then you will never be a successful painter. Have the ambition to be a very good painter who

Note: I want to say that the following post is given entirely within the context of representative painting, specifically realistic plein air painting, that is, plein air painting that

…here is the landscape, moving me to respond to it, taking my breath away… Copying the landscape or rendering precisely the arrangement of objects in a still life

Construct a successful plein air painting from the ground up in three basic steps, laying the foundation, nailing down the look, and finishing it up. Each step includes many important smaller tasks,

Yum! Half the fun of looking at a plein air painting is enjoying it up close and personal. It is a worthy goal for the plein air painter

Sometimes all we have to work with are grays. So, we tell ourselves stories like “gray is good”, especially if we actually prefer bright sun. It’s a mind trick, yes, but the

So much to think about when you are about to begin a plein air painting! To keep from being overwhelmed from the start and to insure success,  take

Not all plein air painting needs to be focused on the landscape. You can set up a still life outside and paint it there. You get all the