Getting your Trinity Audio player ready...

A new movement is underway in Troy and artists from dabblers to Degas are invited to be a part of getting it off the ground.

At 7 p.m. Thursday, March 12, those who are interested in painting in the outdoors are invited to an interest gathering at The Studio on East Walnut Street in Troy. All those who have an interest in painting outdoors are invited and encouraged to come.

Amanda Smothers, a local artist, said the movement is titled Plein Air which in French means, Painting Outdoors. “On the Square” is, of course, the square in downtown Troy, which is the designated outdoor studio where the movement will begin and, hopefully, take root and grow.

“We have artists here in Pike County who enjoy painting outdoors and others who have said they have an interest in painting outdoors,” Smothers said. “The Plein Air idea has been tossed around for a while but nothing has been done to bring it about. So, with spring right here on us, this is a great time to make it happen.”

The interest and idea gathering meeting for Plein Air on the Square on Thursday is open to anyone who has an interest in painting outdoors.

“You do not have to be a professional artist or an experienced artist to attend,” Smothers said. “If you have any interest in painting outdoors, we want you to come. As we begin Plein Air on the Square, it is important to know what the interest level might be in painting outdoors.

“The meeting is also an opportunity to share experiences with outdoor painting so that others will know more what to expect. Painting outdoors is different from painting indoors in many ways. The light changes quickly; there is light and shadows, bugs and traffic and dozens of other distractions and interruptions. But still, outdoors is a great place to paint.”

On Saturday, March 21, Plein Air on the Square will begin to take root on the square from 10 a.m. until 5 p.m.

Smothers said painting outdoors can be as simple as a pad and pencil or as involved as a standing easel, a colorful palette and a dozen bushes.

“From beginners to professional artists, all are welcome,” she said. “Just come, find a place to paint and choose a subject.”

What a painter choses as a subject is strictly up to him or her. I could be a building or a leaf on a tree. It doesn’t matter. “Just create art in the outdoors.”

Those who don’t paint but enjoy art will be invited to bring a blanket and enjoy Plein Art on the Square.