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Wednesday, September 8, 2010

Corner of 13th and Penn during Denver Plein Air Event

I wish I had a few photos to illustrate this blog post. A few days ago, I participated in the paint out during the Denver Plein Air Event on 13th Avenue. I chose the corner of 13th and Pennsylvania. This area is called Capital Hill and has a very diverse population. I was set up in the shadow of a local bar that happened to have a few parking spaces that came in to the sidewalk area behind me. My subject was the twin spires of the Gothic style Basilica to the north. I had an interesting few hours on that corner. There was a mushroom deal going down on the trunk of a car right behind me. Once that was completed the young man with dreadlocks came over to talk to me about what medium I was using. He likes to paint in acrylics; we talked about the advantages and disadvantages of oils vs acrylics. Then there was the 50 something year old woman, her face covered in what I would venture to guess are sebaceous cysts, who told me that one of the spires (the lighter colored one to the East) was hit by lightening a few years ago; she was also into politics so we chatted about the upcoming elections. A young man missing his two front teeth wanted to talk about doing portraits in pencil and did I think he could move to painting from working in pencil? (I said of course!) Another man came by, one I would say lived on the streets, and he told me I was doing a “good job and good subject.” Then there was the middle aged couple who had gone to the coffee shop across the street and were walking back by; she said not only was my painting of a church but it felt very tranquil as well. The last comment came from an older gentleman who had parked his truck behind me, jumped out and went to pick up something in a brown paper bag, he said to me, “Don’t let anyone tell you any different. That is a good painting. “ I was talking to another artist at the time and we were critiquing it. Maybe I should stand on that corner more often! I have had plenty of conversations over the years with people curious about the whole painting outdoors concept, but I don’t think I have had quite the range of people as I did this time. It is amazing I got any painting done.

2 comments:

Travelingrant said...

That is hilarious. And awesome. Now I want to see the painting.

Aloha Sistah said...

That is a more interesting? edgier? part of Denver. And art-oriented too, apparently.