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Dogs are an intrinsic part of every day for me - they're my companions at home and they come along whenever possible when I travel. So it was only natural that I would take them with me when I went out to paint on location. My dogs provide protection and companionship, but they are also a responsibility that I take very seriously. In response to several requests for information on training dogs for plein air painting trips, here are some tips: [...]

This article was featured in PleinAir Today, a weekly e-newsletter from PleinAir magazine, on 10/28/20. To start receiving PleinAir Today for free, click here.   Award-winning plein air painter Kathleen Dunphy knows a thing or two about maximizing her time in the field. Here, she shares four secrets to staying at the ready for whenever inspiration strikes. Get up earlier than you think you need to. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve gotten to a painting site when the light was perfect — and by the time I set up my gear, the effect I was interested in was gone. I often leave the house in the dark [...]

I've always said that I could spend a dozen lifetimes working in oils and never feel like I've mastered the medium. I have avoided other mediums in order to maintain my focus and not get distracted with new "toys". But then a good friend who had recently become enamored with gouache (and who had tried in vain to get me to use it) sent me a complete kit: paint, sketchbook, brushes, and best of all...a handmade wooden box/easel. At that point, my only options were to be rude to my friend or to try it out!  Much to my delight, I found [...]

Wondering what to take when you go outside to paint? The soaring popularity of plein air painting over the past few years has brought with it an incredible influx of equipment for artists to use outdoors. Some of this gear is great…and a lot of it is either unnecessary or poorly made. It’s been seven years since I posted my blog on my plein air supplies. Though much of my equipment remains the same, I have made a few addition/subtractions/substitutions over the years, so here is an updated description of the items I carry when I go out to paint. First and [...]

There’s not much I love doing more than painting, but cross-country skiing comes close. There are many beautiful days in the winter when I‘m torn between either painting or skiing, wishing for more hours of daylight to get them both in. Even when I’m not at the easel, my mind inevitably wanders to painting as I ski on the picturesque trails. As I was gliding through beautiful landscapes and planning my next set of snow paintings last week, I thought about the parallels between skiing and painting. Here are some lessons learned from the ski trails that can be applied to [...]