Plein Air in South TX: Painting Seascapes or Destruction?

This week, the Rockport Center for the Arts’ former home is being razed due to damages resulting from Hurricane Harvey. There are still many places throughout coastal South Texas that remain as they were the day after Harvey hit eight months ago. Some are now empty lots where there used to be buildings.

Rockport Center for the Arts is going to host “Plein Air Southwest,” a juried plein air competition, in which 53 selected artists will paint for 6 days at locations including Rockport, Fulton, Aransas Pass, and Port Aransas from May 21-25. Artists will compete for over $25,000 in cash and merchandise.

Will the artists choose to paint seascapes with exotic birds or the destruction created by Harvey? Juror Joshua Been’s motto is “Just Go Paint.”