Sedona Arts Center invites everyone to be inspired and experience master artists painting in the Shangri-La of the Southwest. Sedona is a sublime and stunningly beautiful environment steeped in art history.

The Arts Center dates back 60 years to the founding of Sedona’s identity as an art colony. The community’s iconic and wonderfully creative event — Sedona Plein Air Festival — is a week-long celebration of extraordinary landscapes, world-renowned artists, unique workshops and free events being held Saturday through Saturday, Oct. 13 through 20.

The festival takes place during the best weather week of the year and is supported by a group of very experienced and enthusiastic staff and volunteers. Come celebrate creativity with the Arts Center family and enjoy receptions, exhibitions, lectures, and opportunities to collect your next masterpiece at the 14th annual Sedona Plein Air Festival.

This year, 30 artists have been invited to the festival to celebrate the landscape by marrying it with art, food and wine during the week-long event. Plein air painting – or painting outdoors from life — began in the era leading up to the Impressionist art movement in Europe when oil paint was first made portable by being sold in tubes.

Traditionally, the festival has been a purely invitational event but this year the program began with an online jury submission process where artists could submit their work for consideration. A jury panel selected the 30 artists from over 75 entries resulting in more “new” artists attending the event this year than ever before.

The event is sponsored by the city of Sedona and local businesses and resorts and many people plan their vacations solely around attending the event. Paint-outs are held at sponsored locations and resorts including L’Auberge de Sedona, Seven Canyons Resort and Mariposa.

A paint-out is when the artists gather at a particular time of day and at a particular place to finish a work in a two to three-hour period. The public gets to tour the terrain where the artists are working and witness the process of paintings coming to life. The finished works are gathered together at the end of the paint-out, framed and put on display on artist’s easels available for purchase. Awards are given at each paint-out.

The festival is also supported by a very experienced and enthusiastic group of staff and volunteers. The Sedona community of art lovers open their doors volunteering to host the 30 artists from around the country in their homes or casitas for the week. Each host is gifted a painting from the visiting artist.

It all starts with an opening exhibition of six works brought by each artist from their home terrain creating a diverse opening reception at 7 p.m. Saturday, Oct. 13, at Sedona Arts Center. The works represent a variety of media and style, incorporating studio work with their plein air masterpieces.

Paintings completed during the festival are integrated into the ongoing exhibition throughout the week. These works are available for sale to patrons all week long in the plein air galleries at Sedona Arts Center. Each new work finished during the festival are hung with an identifying ‘wet paint’ sticker beside them.

The festival includes many free educational components. In addition to paint-outs, there will be a keynote presentation mid-week, an informative seminar on artists’ colors presented by Gamblin Oils, and a unique history of plein air painting presented by Carl Judson of Guerilla Painter, a supplier of all kinds of accessories and tools for plein air artists.

The keynote presenter this year is Bill Cramer from Prescott. He will also serve as the judge for a set of final awards and he will be teaching a three-and-a-half-day workshop with a group of 15 students starting mid-week. The final morning of the workshop, Cramer will demonstrate the process of making a larger studio painting from plein air studies and photography taken on site. The final demonstration morning can be attended by the public for a small fee.

Friday evening, Oct. 19, is awards night. The artists display their best three works in the Special Exhibition Gallery and all other works in the adjacent Theatre Studio in Sedona Arts Center’s Historic Art Barn. The galleries close for the afternoon for a complete re-hanging of the festival and re-open at 5 p.m.

Awards night is a celebration of the week’s work. But the festival culminates in a Main Street paint-out where artists produce work along State Route 89A in Uptown Sedona. The public is invited to walk the streets and gather at the Arts Center for the final display of these works. Then a final lunch is served with the public invited to dine with all the artists and peruse the galleries for final purchases.

Throughout the week, artists will be integrating new work into the Sedona Arts Center’s Special Exhibition Gallery and Theatre Studio. Paintings are available for sale to patrons all week long.

The schedule of events is as follows:

•  Saturday, Oct. 13, 7 p.m. Opening Reception

Join us for a special reception, where each artist will exhibit select works from their home terrain, creating a diverse opening to the festival that represents a variety of media and styles, incorporating studio and plein air work. This is the first chance to meet the artists of the 2018 Festival and see their various styles and talent.

• Sunday, Oct. 14, 10 a.m. to noon, Gamblin Oil Painting Materials Free Presentation

The public is invited to attend an informative free presentation by Ann Fox Ryan of Gamblin Artist’s Colors on the history of color, the development of tube paints and the ever evolving world of oil painting materials and colors.

•  Sunday, Oct. 14, 1 to 4 p.m. Courageous Color Workshop

Join artist and Gamblin Color expert Anna Fox Ryan for an afternoon of courageous color mixing. Participants will each receive four 8-by-8 Ampersand panels, and unlimited Gamblin paints. Explore various ways of creating mood through color and color relationships.

•  Tuesday, Oct. 16, 7 to 8 p.m. Paint-Outside the Box presentation with Carl Judson

The public is invited to attend a free presentation on the history of plein air painting from Leonardo da Vinci to David Hockney. The theme of the night is an exploration of personal style in plein air work. Judson is the owner of Guerrilla Painter a company that provides all material associated with plein air painting including pochade boxes, paints and accessories.

•  Wednesday, Oct. 17, 10 a.m. to noon. Creekside Paint Out at L’Auberge de Sedona

The public is invited to watch artists paint both still and moving water, reflections, sycamores and ducks at this setting along Oak Creek. Awards and sale immediately following at L’Auberge de Sedona. There will be a public shuttle provided by Red Rock Magic Trolley from 8:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., picking up in the Sedona Arts Center lower parking lot and shuttling to and from nearby L’Auberge Resort.

•  Wednesday, Oct. 17, 7 p.m. Keynote presentation with Bill Cramer

This presentation is open to the public. This year’s judge and keynote speaker, Bill Cramer, will give a digital presentation followed by a reception in the Special Exhibition Gallery. Cramer is known for his award winning paintings and has been an instructor with the Arts Center for many years.

•  Thursday, Oct. 18, 1 to 4 p.m. Paint-out at Seven Canyons

The public is invited to Seven Canyons to watch artists paint the afternoon and evening light as it carves out the red rock profiles. Artists will explore panoramic vistas from the Clubhouse, driving range, and views from Rachel’s Knoll. Red Rock Magic Trolley will provide shuttle service between all the painting venues. An awards ceremony and reception on the event lawn will commence at 4 p.m.

•  Friday, Oct. 19, 5 to

8 p.m. Plein air party and awards presentation

Held at Sedona Arts Center’s Special Exhibition Gallery and Theatre Studio in the Historic Art Barn, this big event will feature fine wine, fine hors d’oeuvres and fine art. Artist awards are presented throughout the evening, recognizing the best work created during the week including Best of Show and merit awards by Festival judge Bill Cramer, Artist’s Choice Award, Collectors Choice by ballot and Sedona Arts Center Awards.

•  Saturday, Oct. 20, 10 a.m. to noon. Main Street Paint-Out

The final paint-out of the festival is held in collaboration with the city of Sedona and is the last chance for visitors and residents to become acquainted with the artists and observe them in action. Artists will paint in Uptown Sedona on State Route 89A from the Arts Center to Pink Jeep Café. Sale and awards at the Arts Center will immediately follow, along with a free cook-out outside the plein air galleries. Final event sales are from noon to 2 p.m. This event is sponsored by the city of Sedona.

2018 Sedona Plein Air Festival Awards

•  Best in Show Award pays $500.00 and a half-page ad in Plein Air Magazine
•  A Collector’s Choice and an Artists Choice award each have a $500 prize.
•  Six awards are provided by Materials Sponsors Gamblin Oils and Guerilla Painter with two awards at each paint out, $250 value each.
•  In addition to the Best of Show Award, three Merit Awards are selected by the Judge and Keynote Speaker for the event.
•  A special “Image Award” is used in advertising for the next year’s festival