Forty juried artists will descend on Alameda during the first week of August to paint outdoors during the 18th annual Frank Bette Plein Air Paintout. You can see them in action as they create their art works outdoors, en plein air, around our Island City. They’ll be painting tree-lined vistas, stately Victorian-era mansions, sweet little bungalows, sandy beaches, ships in dry dock, views of San Francisco, reflections in our lagoons, and boats sailing on the estuary or sitting quietly at the dock.
The artists say that the huge variety of subjects in Alameda is a big draw. Nationally known artists such as watercolorist Geoff Allen, from Ventura, California, are coming for the first time and Chuck Kovacic will be up from southern California for his fourth year. Barbara Tapp, Bay Area painter and our “poster girl”—her work is featured on all our marketing—is making her mark on the national scene with a recently released how-to video. Locals Mark Monsarrat, Paul Feinberg and Nancy Takaichi have attended nearly every year. At least half of the artists have returned multiple years to capture the beauty and the quirks of our town.
Thursday, August 3, will be a special day to see the artists at work. Almost all of them will be painting along Grand Street—and one block each side—from the Bay to the Estuary, during the “Quick Draw” event from 9 to 11:30 a.m. The artists will have exactly two-and-a-half hours to complete their paintings before bringing them to Neptune Court (near Daiso) at South Shore Center for an exhibit and sale (1 to 6 p.m.).
Community members also are invited to participate in the Quick Draw event. Register at Neptune Court on Thursday morning, 8:30 to 9 a.m., then paint until 11:30 a.m. and return with your painting by noon. Your work will be hung for the exhibit and sale along with our juried artists. Cost to participate in the exhibit and sale is $10.
Works produced during the week (four to 10 per artist) will be on display and offered for sale at South Shore Center in both Center and Neptune courts on Saturday, August 5, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. The awards ceremony will take place at 1:30 p.m. in Neptune Court, followed by a concert featuring the 360’s band, who are returning after rave reviews last year. They will play from 2 to 4 p.m. in Neptune court.
Meanwhile, some of the artists will offer live demos in Center Court. Geoff Allen will offer a watercolor demo at 10 a.m., Teresa Steinbach-Garcia will provide a pastels demo at 11:45 a.m., and Nancy Takaichi will show how to work with oils at 2:30 p.m.
For those who are unable to attend these fun events during the first week of August, a limited selection of works will be shown at the “En Plein Air” exhibit at the Frank Bette Center for the Arts, August 11 through September 30. The gallery is located at 1601 Paru St.; exhibit hours are Friday to Sunday, 11 to 5 p.m.
Also, please note that the Frank Bette Center will have special hours during the Paintout: Monday through Wednesday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Friday 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. The center will be closed on Thursday so they can be at South Shore Center for the Quick Draw event.
Margaret Fago is Board President and Executive Director of Frank Bette Center for the Arts, and is co-chair of the Plein Air Paintout. Contact Margaret via [email protected]
