Scotchman Peaks gets Plein Air Paintout date
—Courtesy photo Moscow painter Aaron Johnson captures a scene for the 2015 Friends of Scotchman Peaks Wilderness Plein Air Paintout.
The proposed Scotchman Peaks Wilderness is a beautiful place. Its presence on the northeast edge of Lake Pend Oreille has attracted the attention of artists for decades. In that tradition, for the past nine years, Friends of Scotchman Peaks Wilderness (FSPW) and the Outskirts Gallery in Hope have hosted the Scotchman Peaks Plein Air Paintout. This event, to be held this year on Saturday, October 8, is a chance for artists from all over the Northwest to capture the beauty of the West Cabinets as well as the lake, Lightning Creek and the Clark Fork and Bull River valleys surrounding these rugged peaks.
This year, accomplished professional and amateur artists as well as beginners are invited to “create your best post card.” Participants will be given a six-by-eight-inch canvas at registration upon which to produce what they feel will make a great postcard representation of the Peaks or surrounding area.
“Artists of all skill levels can have fun with this,” sad FSPW program coordinator Sandy Compton. “I might even do one, and I’m definitely not a fine artist.”
Artists will have from “dawn to dusk” to make the best rendition of the Scotchmans that they can. The results will be hung at the Outskirts Gallery just after sundown. Participants might keep in mind that the three favorites will actually become post cards that will be sold to benefit the Scotchman Peaks Wilderness effort. The registration fee for this event is $25, also to benefit FSPW. Scholarships are available for kids who wish to paint with parents or grandparents.
“We want to see how the kids see this area, too,” said FSPW executive director Phil Hough. “This is also a great opportunity to get young people outside and engaged in the arts, all in one day.”
One of the paintings sold at last year’s Plein Air Paintout was done during the event by Moscow painter Aaron Johnson’s young daughter.
Kally Thurman at the Outskirts Gallery in Hope is handling registration. Call 208-264-5856 or e-mail her at kallythurman@gmail.com