Out on the Range

Plein air painters flock to the ranchlands of San Angelo, Texas, for a week of outdoor art-making culminating.

The 9th annual EnPleinAirTEXAS event is much more than an exhibit. One of the premier plein air painting competitions in the United States, the event brings 35 artists, selected from a large pool of national and international award-winning applicants, to the historic West Texas city of San Angelo for a week of painting activities that culminates in an exhibition of the 300-plus works created during the event.Christine Lashley won the 2021 Elta Joyce Murphey Grand Prize Award for her piece Night at the Museum.

Following a four-day ranch retreat where artists live and paint on 15 ranches spread across the region, EnPleinAirTEXAS officially kicks off for the public on October 24 with an artist welcome party at the San Angelo Museum of Fine Arts overlooking downtown and the scenic Concho River. (EnPleinAirTEXAS serves as a fundraiser for the museum’s children’s outreach programming).

On October 25 and 26, the public is invited to watch the artists paint in various locations downtown and along the river. Meanwhile, pieces created during the artists’ time painting on the ranches will be for sale at the San Angelo Museum of Fine Arts’ Gallery Verde. On October 27, the public is welcome to spend the day at an area ranch, where they will be transported between artist painting spots. The afternoon includes lunch with the artists and a private showing and sale of works painted that morning. A limited number of tickets are available for this event.EnPleinAirTEXAS artist Chris Leeper painting on the Cleere Ranch during the 2021 event.

The annual EnPleinAirTEXAS Stampede exhibition and sale is held at the Stables at Fort Concho Historic Site.

On October 28, the hundreds of paintings created over the past week will be on display and for sale at the festive Stampede exhibit, held at the Stables at Fort Concho Historic Site, where the winners of more than $30,000 in prizes will be announced.

EnPleinAirTEXAS sprung from the area’s history and natural beauty. “One-hundred years ago, plein air artists gathered on the banks of the South Concho River, just 20 miles south of San Angelo, to paint ‘en plein air’ with teachers from as far away as the Chicago Art Institute,” explains event co-founder Barbara Rallo. “The Texas Artists Camp grew to be one of the leading plein air gatherings in the Southwest. That plein air history makes San Angelo a wonderful place to bring back the spirit of long ago…[And with] a seemingly endless supply of private ranches across the Concho Valley, artists have access to land and scenery that you can only dream about!” The Lipan Giveth earned artist Bill Farnsworth a second place award in the 2021 event.

Saturday, October 29, closes out the event with one more day of plein air painting along the Paseo sidewalk where artists will be painting the colorful Dia de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) celebration while the exhibit and sale continues for the remainder of the day at Fort Concho. For a detailed schedule of events and ticket information visit www.enpleinairtexas.com. —

EnPleinAirTEXAS
October 21-29, 2022
San Angelo, TX
www.enpleinairtexas.com