PORT ANGELES — Artists from all over the United States and Canada are painting their impressions of the outdoor beauty of the North Olympic Peninsula this week, and those fresh looks at what the rest of us see every day will be on view Saturday.
Entries into Paint the Peninsula — a juried plein air competition hosted by the Port Angeles Fine Arts Center at 1203 E. Lauridsen Blvd. — will be on display at the fine arts center, with a reception and awards ceremony from 6 p.m. to 8 p.m. Saturday.
Tickets are $30 in advance or $35 at the door. Advance tickets can be purchased online at www.paintthepeninsula.org.
Awards will include $2,500 for Best in Show, $1,500 for Artist’s Choice and $1,000 each for the Poster Award, Best Landscape, Best Waterscape, Best Architectural, Best Sails, Motors and Wheels, Best Nocturne and the Spirit of the Peninsula Award.
All submitted art will be for sale, with 40 percent of proceeds benefiting the fine arts center, according to www.paintthepeninsula.org.
In the meantime, the 25 artists chosen for the competition are fanning out across Clallam and Jefferson counties, setting up their easels and quickly painting local scenes in the unique plein air style, which relies heavily on natural light and shadows.
Today, some artists will offer demonstrations at 11 a.m., 1 p.m. and 3 p.m. at the Storm King Ranger Station and at Lake Crescent Lodge.
Area residents and visitors are encouraged to call the fine arts center at 360-457-3532 to find out where other artists are painting.
On Friday, plein air artists will move to Port Angeles to paint at City Pier and the esplanade.
Nineteen artists were chosen from among 97 who applied to compete in this year’s event. Six guest artists who were previous winners were invited to return.
Following the conclusion of the competition, a plein air workshop lead by Christine Debrosky, who will judge the juried show, is scheduled for Sunday through Tuesday.
The workshop will run from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. each day. Students can work in pastel, oil or watercolor and are asked to bring a Northwest palette and plein air supplies.
Participants will be notified by email of the meeting location.
The cost to participate is $350 per person.
For more information, contact Jinx Bryant at 360-912-4030.
