1. How many years have I participated in the Edisto Plein Air Paint Out? - I was one of the original artists who painted in the Edisto Plein Air Paint Out at its inception in 2020. I've participated in every single EPAPO except for last year's (2025) because we were "cruising" to celebrate my husband's birthday - it was a "big" one.
I saw an article in Oil Painters of America about it and thought I might as well give it a "go" as it is in my own back yard! That is where I first met Christian Stemkowski and her daughter who was assisting her for the event.
2. What I recall about the 2020 Plein Air event was how impressed I was with Christian's seemingly "single-handed" operations and how well she did for her first time hosting such an enormous endeavor. Everything was outside: check-in, stamping of canvases and of course painting. I don't recall where the finale' was and where all the art was hung. But I do remember enjoying Edisto and the painting opportunities immensely. The pandemic really didn't have much of an impact at that point late in the year, that I can recall. Painting is done outside and we Artists are all spread out anyway so I hardly remember an issue with it in regard to COVID.
3. The experience as a whole has undergone quite the transformation over the years. Christian has done an amazing job navigating the changes from being in partnership with OPA to running it on her own to acquiring the best Volunteers that make the entire event a success each year. Each Edisto Plein Air Paint Out event has eclipsed itself from the previous year. The facilities have improved to show the art; the manner in which the art is exhibited and the attention and sales from the general public has only improved with each year. It has taken on a life of its own and I believe that it is an event that the Artists as well as the Public look forward to all year long.
4. What keeps me coming back to EPAPO each year? That's easy: the ones putting it on, the Artists who participate and beautiful Edisto Island and the opportunity to paint it are only some of the main reasons why I come back to this event. Edisto Island is such a lovely place with rich history and beautiful vistas and views that it deserves to be painted (and hopefully preserved)!
5. How do I choose where and what to paint during the event? That is a really complex question to answer. Sometimes when you have too many beautiful options the hardest thing to do is pick just one.
Christian and her volunteers help tremendously by creating destinations approved beforehand by the property owners that allow us access to their otherwise private land. The pretty options are more plentiful than there is time to paint so one must be very picky: time it right when the conditions are right, setting or rising sun, high tide or low, is it being "painted to death" by everyone else? There are so many things to consider.
6. The changing light, weather and other outdoor conditions influence one's painting time 100%. Plein air painting is challenging because of these factors. It would be easy just to snap a photograph and go back to a temperature-controlled studio and paint away, but the "spirit" of the moment en plein air will be missing. Sometimes an Artists must make decisions on the fly because they are outside in the elements, the bugs are biting or the tide is rising or that sun just won't stand still!! And each of these decisions makes the final painting what it is. The entire process tells the story of what it took to be there and experience that moment, not just record it on canvas. It is almost a spiritual experience that can't be articulated any other way except to be there that moment as you paint it for the viewer. Plein Air Painting is not static but an ongoing, energetic experience captured on a single canvas.
7. Botany Bay offers everything a Plein Air Painter could want so I often find myself there at least once each year. I also love to try to capture the gorgeous roadside feel of "Flowers Seafood" and the colorful, "McConkey's Jungle Shack" restaurant. Each of the designated locations scouted out before the event offer stellar views and painting opportunities.
8. It is always my hope that my paintings capture a nuance or a beauty that one would otherwise overlook. Edisto is a place of great natural beauty and painting is a wonderful way to bring attention to aspects that the general public might not notice. Artists see things in ways that people in general look past. And we have a super power to bring attention to that beauty through our paintings in a way that can arrest the attention of the onlooker and hopefully get them to admit that they "never really saw it that way, but can see it now." Art brings awareness and appreciation to things people don't see at first. Our plein air paintings hopefully will preserve what we find beautiful or worth talking about for years to come even after the developers come in and change things up. Edisto is being noticed for all the right reasons but it is my hope that people will remember why they found Edisto Island so wonderful in the first place and not corrupt it but enhance it.
