The Plein Air Scene

The Plein Air Scene has been on the web for many years under the leadership of Sarah Beserra and it continues to be developed by plein air painter Robert Lewis. View Site Map for a list of our content or search by categories.
Our intention is to develop a comprehensive list of plein air competitions, organization, and other information for plein air artists, and to make this information easily searchable.

For more information about the publisher, Robert Lewis, visit the online portfolio of his plein air and studio work at www.robertlewisart.com.

History

The Plein Air Scene site and newsletter was originally published by Sarah Beserra. The following image shows the original visual style of thepleinairscene.com website:

The following is a quote by Sarah Beserra from her August 2000 statement on the original thepleinairscene.com website:

I started The Plein Air Scene * in December of 1997, at the request of a friend who had recently started collecting plein air paintings. She wanted to know where she could see the work of local painters. That one-page letter has grown into a 14-16 page publication with color inserts and a nation-wide mailing list which includes collectors, artists, museums, galleries and painting lovers. The Plein Air Scene magazine reports on all of the plein-air painting news in California, as well as some out-of-state goings on.

I had been a modest collector of plein air paintings over the years even before I knew exactly what they were. When the prices started skyrocketing during the 1980′s, I began collecting the works of more affordable contemporary regional painters and the rest, as they say is history. In addition to publishing the magazine and the Web site, I teach a course on California Impressionism and conduct studio tours in Northern California.