A Message from B. Eric Rhoads, Publisher of Plein Air Magazine
When I was a child, my 4th grade teacher Mrs. Burket scolded me for being a daydreamer. Though I was sent to the principal's office for daydreaming, I could not stop because dreams were all I had to help me escape the boredom. My life has been filled with dreams and big ideas in spite of the criticism from those who don't understand the impact of big dreams.
Life Through the Eyes of a Painter
Every day of my life is enhanced by seeing life through the eyes of a painter. I study color, light, shadow and composition at every turn. My non-painter friends find it odd when I comment on a glowing pink sky or the greyish blue-greens of a horizon. Painting changed my life. Painting opened my eyes and I would not have become a painter had I not been introduced to it. Art was barely on my radar until my wife bought me my first art lesson. That one art lesson resulted in a new passion for art and painting. It also resulted in the creation of PleinAir magazine, Fine Art Connoisseur Magazine, Artist Advocate magazine and many other adventures in art like the Russian Art Cruise, the Danube Art Cruise, the Portrait Project, the PleinAir Salon and now the PleinAIr Convention. Today we are able to expose tens of thousands of people to artwork they otherwise would not see.... all as a result of an introduction to art and because I'm a daydreamer.
Since I first started PleinAir magazine I have dreamed of getting all the great painters in the world together. Again, I was dreaming about how much fun it would be to walk through a giant field and watch all the great living masters paint and how much fun it would be to gather round all the great painters to trade stories and learn from their experiences. Most importantly, I thought it would be wonderful to expose everyone to one another, because you don't have to be a great master to teach others. We all have experiences to share. The dream is happening with the first PleinAir convention. The biggest gathering of PleinAir painters in one place in history. We already know of painters coming from every state, and from as far away as Europe and New Zealand.
Creating Special Memories
As an experiment last summer, I invited a few painters to paint with me in the Adirondack Mountains I love so dearly. Before I knew it, my friends were inviting other friends and the list grew. Suddenly, I had to find housing for 88 painters. What was amazing about that event is that we had some of the best artists in the world combined with painters at all levels from beginner to intermediate. I was concerned that the masters might only want to spend time with others in their league, but the opposite happened. We all spent time with one another and developed deep life-long friendships and spent a magical week together painting. At night we would lay out our paintings and everyone could learn by seeing how others interpreted the same scenes they had just painted. One one day we gathered in one spot and all 88 of us painted the exact same scene. It was magical. Every person in attendance said it was one of the most special and memorable events of their life.
The PleinAir convention is all about the magic of friendships, of learning and of building the community of PleinAir to the next level. My goal is to help everyone get exposed to the highest quality painters, to give you loads of demonstrations without fear that you'll be unable to get accepted into a particular workshop, and to raise the bar for plein air painting. You'll not only learn about painting, but about quality painting, about how to sell your art and how to take your career (or hobby) to a higher level. After all, we're in this together and if we work together, we raise the bar for everyone. All the experiences combined will make you a better painter. (Yes, you're welcome to attend if you're a plein air collector or enthusiast too!)
I hope you'll join me in making the dream for a better plein air world come true. Drag your friends along, expose someone new to plein air... and you'll change their life forever. I hope this few days together will be a life changing event for you.
- Eric Rhoads,
Publisher PleinAir Magazine
"You May Say I'm a dreamer; but I'm not the only one."- John Lennon
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