The Plein Air show at William Miller Gallery prompted me to bring out a couple of older paintings. Into the Forest (26″ x 22″ oil on canvas, framed) has been hiding in storage for years, but it takes me right back to a warm day in 2011 when Meg West and Eileen French, I believe, hiked with me along the Meadowcreek Parkway — still under construction at the time — to find our respective spots to set up our easels and paint. I remember wiping sweat from my eyes as I peered into the woods, imagining there was a composition there but not quite sure how it would materialize. I enjoy painting from that precarious place, allowing a mysterious something to emerge from chaos and eventually assert itself. Painting outdoors from life captures not only what we see but also our memory of place, feeling, humidity, bugs, and every other subconscious joy or discomfort we carry into that moment. Others may not experience all that by looking at the canvas, but perhaps they sense it. The moment, of course, is now no more than a memory. The Parkway, once a quiet, deserted path for casual walkers, joggers, and oil painters, is now a major artery into downtown Charlottesville. It has been ever since it was renamed the John Warner Parkway and opened to traffic more than a decade ago.
Tulip Garden, Monticello is a small piece painted while seated by the winding garden path near the entrance to Thomas Jefferson’s house at Monticello. I don’t remember whether I was alone that day or if I’d brought my father along. He always seemed content to wander or rest while I painted — it probably carried him back to his childhood when he enjoyed accompanying his mother while she painted. Mainly, I remember tourists walking past as I held this little canvas board in my hand and painted the tulips, trying not to paint my fingers in the process. I have fond memories of many trips to Monticello with my dad back then; he passed away a year and a half ago. I also miss the regular trips Meg and the rest of our little troupe of plein air painters made to that beautiful, uplifting historical hilltop. I’m grateful for how she inspired us to get out and paint together.
The Plein Air show opens Thursday, April 10, 2025, and will be ongoing through April 22. Special gallery hours while road construction is underway are:
Tuesday–Friday, 4:30–7 p.m.
Saturday 10 a.m.–7 p.m.
Sunday 1–5 p.m.
Come to the opening reception, Saturday, April 12, 5-8 p.m.! William H. Miller Studios & Fine Art, 702 8th Ave. N., Myrtle Beach, SC 29577.
Leave a Reply