Oceanside Museum Of Art Announces 2nd Biennial Oceanside Plein Air Festival And Juried Exhibition

Oceanside Museum of Art is thrilled to announce the return of the Oceanside Plein Air Festival, taking place July 15–22. The 2nd biennial festival returns to Oceanside to celebrate artistic expression and the natural environment, bringing together artists of all levels with friends, neighbors, art lovers, and visitors through a robust program of workshops, events, artwork sales, and opportunities to meet and mingle with artists.

The festival will conclude on Saturday, July 22, with a juried exhibition, art sale, and awards ceremony. The 2023 Plein Air exhibition will be on view through January 2024.

“OMA’s Plein Air Festival brings the San Diego community together to watch the incredible scenery of Southern California come to life on canvas and paper,” says Maria Mingalone, Executive Director of Oceanside Museum of Art.

“We’re building on the success of our inaugural event in 2021 and are thrilled to program a more robust festival with new events, a greater number of participating artists, and more ways people can interact during the festival. We invite the entire San Diego community to see these talented artists at work, support our local businesses, and fall in love with Oceanside’s art scene!”

Plein air painting

Plein air painting is a painting completed in the field, outside on location, and “in the moment.” This style allows artists to leave the four walls of their studio and paint in situ among the stunning natural and urban landscapes of Oceanside and the surrounding areas. From breathtaking coastlines and charming cityscapes to the serene lagoons and luscious hills, artists can use any artistic medium or style to capture the visual splendor all around them.

Throughout the week, up to 350 participating artists will complete multiple pieces of work ‘en plein air’ and will submit their top two pieces for consideration in the juried exhibition and awards. The 2023 Plein Air exhibition will display approximately 60 of the jury’s favorite paintings, including works by featured artists Geoff Allen, Eileen McCullough, Gabriel Stockton, and Toni Williams.

In addition to painting at locations of their own choice throughout the week, festival participants and visitors will take part in a series of events including hands-on artist workshops, communal Paint Outs, a Quick Paint Challenge, opportunities for artists to meet each other in networking events, times for the community to meet the artist, sales of artwork right off artists’ easels, and a Green Clean Up. The festival will culminate in a day of celebration on Saturday, July 22 where there will be an awards ceremony and celebration along with a grand easel sale.

Oceanside Plein Air Festival programming includes:

Artist Workshops
During the festival, participants have the opportunity to attend daily workshops to receive expert guidance and instruction from experienced plein air artists on specific techniques as well as receive personalized feedback on their work.

Paint Out Events
Throughout the week, there will be select days and times where festival artists are encouraged to come together and paint on location at iconic sites, such as Robert’s Cottages, Oceanside Harbor, and more. These are prime times for community members to meet the artists, see them create and possibly leave with a work of art purchased directly from the artist.

Quick Paint Challenge
Open to all participants, artists are invited to partake in a two-hour burst of creativity highlighting one of Oceanside’s most iconic outdoor locations, Mission San Luis Rey. With the task of completing a painting in a single sitting, Quick Paint artists are challenged to grab a brush, set up an easel, and paint en plein air for all to see.

Awards & Juried Exhibition
Festival participants will submit two pieces to be considered for the Oceanside Plein Air Festival Awards, and winners will be announced at the Awards Ceremony on July 22, from 12PM–2PM.  60 pieces of art from the festival, including the winning pieces, will be on display at Oceanside Museum of Art from July 22–January, 2024.

See you there

Oceanside Museum of Art’s 2023 Plein Air Festival takes place July 15 – 22 and is open to artists of all levels. Festival participants will be able to select two artworks to be considered for the juried exhibition running July 22–January, 2024.

For more information and a full schedule of events, please visit here.

See you there, San Diego!