Call for *Plein Air* Writers

Thank you to Soapstone for sending this out on their announcement list. It looks amazing - I've never done it but will try to participate on one day. Off to check my schedule and see when I can be there. I love this idea!

Pacific Northwest Plein Air

Columbia Center for the Arts (CCA) will host its sixth annual PACIFIC NORTHWEST PLEIN AIR 2010 in the Columbia River Gorge, from August 26 to 30, 2010. As in previous years, the event features both a “Paint-Out” for artists, and a “Write-Out” for writers.

The writing portion of the Plein Air show is an open-call event that culminates in publication on the CCA website and a public reading in the CCA theater. Writing can be prose or poetry (or any combination thereof). The registration fee is $15, or $25 to include admission to the Painting Preview party on Thursday, September 2.

August 10 Registration deadline
August 26 – 30 Write-out days, locations TBD
August 30 Submission deadline
September 19 Public reading & online anthology launch party, 7 p.m.

Locations for the Plein Air Write-Out/Paint-Out are:

Text Box: Photographs by Darryl Lloyd Top: Columbia Gorge Bottom: Mt. AdamsThursday, 26 - The Gorge White House - Hood River Valley

· Friday, 27 - Timberline Lodge - Mt Hood

· Saturday, 28 -Springhouse Cellar Vineyard - Mosier

· Sunday, 29 - The Dalles Mountain Ranch at Columbia Hills State Park – Washington

· Monday, 30 - Downtown Hood River

NOTE: The gallery exhibit (which will also include posting one piece from each writer) will open September 3 and run through the end of the month.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is plein air?
En plein air is a French term for painting in the out-of-doors with the goal of capturing a moment—the lighting, the clouds, the mood—as quickly as possible.

How does a writer do this?
The idea for writers is essentially the same as for painters, but with an important difference: capture a moment before it disappears. Of course, writers are not bound to re-create visual portraits of the landscape—the “moment” might involve other people in the area, sounds or conversations overheard, smells and sensations, or even inner thoughts. The goal is to capture a snippet of time as deftly and quickly as possible and paint a picture for others to “see.”

Do I have to be present each day to participate?
It’s the most fun to go to the scheduled venue and join the other writers and painters at work, but it is not a requirement. However, it is a requirement that the piece you submit for publication and/or present at the public reading be something that was created during this year’s plein air event.

Should I revise my piece before I submit it?
Minimally—while you want to present your best work, you don’t want to lose the “in-the-moment-ness” with which you wrote it.