Photo by Dale O’Dell
The Yavapai College Prescott Art Gallery and the Yavapai College Foundation will present “Art in the Pines: The 5th Annual Prescott Plein Air Festival,” Oct. 9-13. The free festival will feature 19 juried Arizona artists and one California artist painting in outdoor settings throughout Yavapai County, including the area’s beautiful pine forests and highland lakes, as well as amidst the historical and architectural beauty of downtown Prescott.
At specific accessible demonstration sites, the public will have an opportunity to observe and engage with the artists.
Featured artists include Carol Benally, Betty Carr, Cindy Carrillo, Tom Conner, Jonathan Gaetke, Lydia Gatzow, Terri Gay, Kathryn Gipson, Robert Goldman, Lindsay Green, Lance Gulseth, Cathy Krieger, Gretchen Lopez, Harold Nelson, Eric Neubert, Beth Okurowski, Linda Pullinsi, Kyle Rafferty and Luke Watson.
“I love how educational the Prescott Plein Air event is, as it pertains to the history, process and environment,” says Sedona-based artist Lydia Gatzow, who is returning to the festival this year after participating in 2023. “It really brings you into the spirit of observation and appreciation.”
Gatzow adds that her favorite aspect of painting in the Prescott area is “how vast and diverse the landscape is.”
“One can delight in an early morning vista, forest or creek scene, and by sunset you could be painting on the shore of Watson Lake capturing the light on the granite dells or rendering the backlit meadows at the base of Granite Mountain,” she says.
The Plein Air Festival’s pre-event will run Sept. 16 to Oct. 9, with a special exhibition of works by festival judges and award-winning artists Bill Cramer and Dawn Sutherland.This exhibition will feature a charity auction of signature paintings by each artist accepted into the festival. Sale proceeds from the auction will support scholarships, student art prizes at Yavapai College and festival awards.
Pre-event programming will include a free opening reception Sept. 27 from 5 to 7 Pm at Yavapai College Prescott Art Gallery, 1100 E. Sheldon St.
The festival concludes with a ticketed public gala reception, art sale and presentation of artist awards on Sunday, Oct. 13 from 1:30-4:30 Pm at the Yavapai College Prescott Art Gallery in the Jim and Linda Lee Performing Arts Center. Attendees will be able to visit with the artists and purchase their paintings directly.
For more information call 928.776.2031 or email Timothy.Hull@yc.edu.
