Adventures in Plein Air Painting- The Olmstead Georgia Color Paint Quick

In the fall of this year, I was able to participate in my first en plein air Paint Quick competition. This competition was held in Greensboro, Georgia at the Olmstead Georgia Color Invitational. The Paint Quick is a timed event, where artists are assembled to paint for two hours on location and then their paintings are judged afterwards.

It was a crisp morning and I was bundled up with layers of clothing as well as bundles of paint supplies and my french easel. My comrade en plein air, artist Cris Lawson was also there. She had also encouraged me to enter the competition in North Georgia. The scenery was beautiful, with views of a vineyards, Italian Cypress trees lining a drive of deep rolling hills, a pond, beautiful homes and a splendid view of Lake Oconee. We had left at 4 a.m. from Chula, Georgia to travel to the competition.

We quickly set up and began to paint. I was focused on my subject, a house set upon the tallest hill, encompassed by trees, a stone bridge and stables nearby. The sun was beginning to rise and the colors were magnificent.

I had my headphones on playing my plein air playlist, a mix of folk rock and indie from the nineties when I felt a tap on my shoulder. My sister, Susan, who lives in Athens about an hour away, had trekked over to the competition to cheer me on and offer support. What a wonderful surprise. She soon became everyone's timekeeper, walking around and letting other artists know our current time and how much we had left to paint. She also was immensely helpful when it was almost time for judging when I had to hurriedly pack up and head to the judging area. 

Plein air competitions like this Paint Quick expect artists to showcase their work on an easel and framed. A frame for this event is especially made for wet works that can be popped into the frame and set up fast. We ran up to the judging area and I said a quick prayer for good results.

The judges walked around a viewed our works. There were two sections, "walk-ons" like me and "juried artists" who had been invited the previous week to paint the town of Greensboro. These nationally acclaimed artists' works were spectacular. I enjoyed seeing their work as much as I enjoyed speaking with them and also the other walk-on community artists.

I was pleasantly surprised when my name was announced for second place! My sister and Cris let out exclamations as loud as my own when my name was called. I was very surprised at the win considering it was my first Paint Quick competition. I left the event feeling elated and happy to have faced my fear of entering this prestigious competition. I gave hugs to my sweet sister and to my friend for their support and we left for home.

It was a fantastic experience.