Plein Air Painting in the Summer of 2015

Queen Juliana Bridge, Curacao Plein Air Invitational, 2015

What a year 2015 has been.  I’ve participated in many plein air competitions this year and I’m pleased with the work I’ve produced in the field.  I’ve had fun, too, doing something I really enjoy, something I’m good at and it brings in income for my business.  February opened up with Plein Air Curacao.  I’d never been to this tropical island and what a beauty it is.  The staff of  Plein Air Curacao was remarkable to work with and they went out of their way to be sure artists were respected for their hard work and treated well.  They focused strongly on selling work for artists, and this is a great help to those of us who travel far to participate.  Plein Air Curacao is an event I highly recommend and the island is a must see experience for just about anyone.  Please go if you have the opportunity.  The highlight of the event for me was my Honorable Mention Award at the Quick Draw, presented by judge Peter Trippi.

The Old Florida, Winter Park Invitational, 2015.

Next, I traveled to the Museum of Gadsden in Gadsden, Alabama for the Plein Air Painters of the Southeast Invitational and I thank everyone I met there for the impressive organization in handling their plein air event.  Artists were treated with tremendous respect and the museum staff was organized to the point that our every need was taken care of, and the final sales event garnered many thousands of dollars.  I was impressed with the scenery in this little Alabama town and I’d especially love to paint in the historic district again and some of those Victorian homes.  There’s nothing like spring in the south, when the dogwoods and azaleas are in full bloom.

The Winter Park Paint Out Invitational was another great experience for me and sales in this event were also robust.  At this point, I’d encountered three great sales events and I was feeling pleased about the results of my work.  Winter Park was hot but the painting was great and I discovered the peacock havens in and around the area where large masses of the birds live and this brought a delight to me (and, hopefully, to my customers) to be able to capture these lively and beautiful birds in paint.  I always stop by to see the egrets nesting in this area of Florida, but this year the nestlings weren’t as plentiful.  On my very last day in Florida, I found the lovely wild gardens which are the subject of my painting “The Old Florida,” and I was delighted to meet the wonderful and generous artist who lives there.

 Night Creeps In, Finger Lakes Plein Air, 2015.

Sadly, I had to bow out of the Paint the Beach event in Daytona Beach and  I also had to let go of Plein Air Grand Marais and Plein Air Hudson, because I just couldn’t work out my schedule and finances to make these events happen.  I sincerely hope I will be invited to paint in these venues in the future, and I’ll plan my schedule a little better.  I’m so grateful to be selected for these competitive plein air events

I'm very proud of my Quick Draw painting from Camp Hill, Pennsylvania - drawn, painted and framed within two hours.  Advance preparation makes for a good painting. It was during this event that I began working on preliminary sketching and I do believe it lends the artist a good start.

Sit A Spell, Quick Draw at Camp Hill, 2015.

Finger Lakes Plein Air was a big discovery to me. The area is more rural than I knew, and Canandaigua Lake is pristine.  There’s plenty to paint ranging from rural landscapes to water scenes featuring the lake, and darling villages.  I enjoyed painting the lush greens in this event.  Now, I’m waiting to participate in the Piedmont Plein Air event in High Point, NC and the Brandywine Plein Air event in Pennsylvania.  New discoveries excite me and I know I’m in the right place when I’ve spent some time looking around, trying to select a location and…. I’ve got the tingling feeling that I’ve just got to paint. So, here's to plein air painting and I'm so grateful to have a job that I enjoy.  I  paint because I'm still having a good time, and it's a blessing to have the opportunity to paint our country (and even beyond), capturing history and spirit in watercolor paint.

http://femmesfollesnebraska.tumblr.com/post/56333204096/catherine-hillis-artist

Les Femmes Folles

Women in art

Here's a recent interview by Sally Brown Deskins:

Catherine Hillis is one of the exhibiting artists in Monongalia Arts Center’s “Aqueous 2013" exhibit by the West Virginia Watercolor Society thru August 3.

The artist has painted all her life, winning awards and honors at competitive shows regionally and nationally.  

In July of 2007, she served as Artist in Residence in Dinan, France, and in 2010, she served as Artist in Residence at Hot Springs National Park in Arkansas.  Her work has been published in “The Artistic Touch 5,” and in “Splash 12;” and, the recently released “Splash 14.”    The Splash books are a collection of 100 top contemporary American watercolor paintings; in May, 2011, she won the “Creativity Challenge” in Watercolor Artist Magazine (online version).  She regularly competes in national watercolor exhibitions and plein aire competitions, including the Plein Aire Brandywine competition in 2011, Easels in Frederick, Frederick, MD, 2011, and Ellicott City,  MD, 2012, Cranford, NJ 2013 and the Bucks County 2013 Plein Air Paint Out.  She won an award for her painting in the 2012 Mountain Maryland Plein Aire competition in Cumberland, MD, awarded by well known judge and “Plein Aire” Magazine editor, Stephen Dougherty.

Hillis’ work has been featured in “Best of American Watercolorists, 2007;” she garnered second place in watercolors for the state of Virginia in 2005, her work being published in the book, “Best of Virginia Artists and Artisans, 2005;” her biography is included in “Who’s Who Among American Women, 2006 - 2013.”  

She primarily paints in watermedia, including busy street scenes, coastal landscapes, and her favorite, the historic sites near her home on the Blue Ridge in Virginia.  The hallmarks of her work are rich color and a touch of humor.

The artist offers classes and workshops across the country and abroad: see her website at www.catherinehillis.com for workshop and class information.  You can also view the artist teaching a series of brief watercolor lessons at www.monkeysee.com (type in watercolors onto the subject line), with F&W Media online, and on YouTube at “Watercolor Tips” with Catherine Hillis.

She generously shares with LFF about how she went from modeling to acting to mothering and making visual art, feminism, her artistic process, teaching and more…

How’d you get into art?

I’ve been interested in the arts for as long as I can remember.  As a child, I performed in theater and did some modeling.  The income I made as a child ended up paying for my college education.  I majored in theater at the University of Georgia and did a lot of acting there ( my major love), but I learned skills as a costumer and costume designer, so that I’d have something to fall back on that might generate income.  I ended up working in costumes for several years after graduating.  I did some acting as well.

I started a family before hitting my thirty’s and once I had children, I became a stay at home mom and dropped out of theater.  I really enjoyed those years of raising my 3 children:  reading books and telling stories was my favorite part.

Once my youngest child began toddling, I became hungry for the arts again and began taking watercolor classes.  I could always draw and paint well and watercolors seemed like a good fit because they’re clean, relatively non toxic, I could use them in my kitchen and I could achieve fast results.  I fell in love with the arts all over again and now, after many years, I think it would be difficult to stop me from painting.

I guess painting is a positive sort of …. addiction.  I hate to admit that, but I think it’s true.

I paint because it’s my destiny.  I have to do it.


"Round and Round" watercolor by Catherine Hillis

Tell me about your work. What do you hope viewers get out of your work? Does feminism play a role?

I often like to insert a twist or a sense of humor in my work.  I like to take complex, chaotic scenes and make some sense out of them.  I think this is a reflection of my life…I’d like to be able to do that same thing with life in general…..take chaos, create something, and  make it serene.

I hope that when the observer sees my work they sense a bit of humor, or reflect on some moment in their own life. I like to tell stories with my work and I think that comes from my background in drama.  I always think art should tell a story.

I think the main way feminism may play a role in my work is because I now realize that while I was home watching the children, I did, without a doubt, lose time in my own journey as a professional.  I think about it often, wondering if I can make up that time in my career.  I feel like I’m in a hurry.  I want to express life the way that I see it.  I want to paint and take those chaotic scenes and…work them.


"The David, My Perspective," watercolor by Catherine Hillis

What’s your artistic process like?

I work in my north light studio at home every single day that I can.  I usually start with my first cup of coffee and paint for several hours in the early morning.  If I have a great piece going, I stop for short breaks but will generally work all day.  I’m very disciplined and extremely focused. 

When I’m teaching, though, it’s hard to focus on my own work, so I don’t paint on days that I teach.

What would people be surprised to know about you?

People might be surprised to know that I was a child model and was in a feature in Vogue Magazine in the 60’s.

Any advice for aspiring artists?

I feel very strongly about people following their destiny.  I feel very strongly that painting is my job right now, along with teaching, and that this is the way I’m affecting lives at this time.
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More on Catherine Hillis: catherinehillis.com.
Monongalia Art Center: monartscenter.com.