Contemporary landscape painter Joe Paquet will lead “A Beautiful Beginning: The Art of the Start” pre-convention workshop at the 11th Annual Plein Air Convention & Expo, May 24th, 2024 in the Great Smoky Mountains. Learn about the convention and this amazing opportunity to learn from Joe in person at PleinAirConvention.com – hurry, it’s close to selling out!
“When I was a young student,” Joe said, “Arthur Maynard (a former student of Frank Vincent DuMond) said to me, ‘The better your start is — the closer it will be to a finish.’ It was good advice. I don’t buy into the idea that all paintings must go through an ‘ugly’ stage … It is possible to imply extraordinary elegance and refinement at the block-in stage of your painting and I will show you how.” Learn more about the PACE pre-convention workshop here.
Joe Paquet on Winter Landscape Painting en Plein Air
An excerpt from “Embracing the Snowman Withing: Painting Snow” by John Pototschnik, at OutdoorPainter.com.
Joe Paquet layers up to the point of overheating before going outdoors for a landscape painting session. He too experienced early damage to his hands, so they get cold faster than normal. Despite this, he still wears only a pair of thin gloves, because he needs delicate control of the brush, and he also carries heat packs.
Paquet “prepares” his white paint for winter painting. Joe mixes cold-pressed linseed oil into his lead white before going out. He uses New Traditions half-inch panels mounted with Clausens Linen (Type 15 for large works) and tones the surface prior to painting. He prefers this surface because it never goes slack, the panels are lightweight and very rigid, and the sun doesn’t shine through them. The downside . . . they can become sails in strong winds.
Paquet says he is careful never to rush in order to finish a painting in the field. “Patience is a real virtue. I endeavor to work the whole canvas together in order to find the specific harmony in front of me.”
About the Author:
John Pototschnik is an artist and teacher. Visit his website at www.pototschnik.com, and browse his art workshops at PaintTube.tv.
Explore more articles on landscape painting practices and techniques here at RealismToday.com.
