In conjunction with the opening of the National Oil & Acrylic Painters Society (NOAPS) Best of America Exhibition, the organization (NOAPS) hosted a plein air competition. Participating artists had the opportunity to venture around Old Town Alexandria and find locations to paint, they had two days to complete their work.
The artists dispersed the morning of Wednesday, August 9th, and returned to the gallery with completed paintings on Friday, August 11th. Once all the work was delivered we were tasked with selecting the plein air awards that were announced during the artist luncheon that afternoon.
For the artists to qualify for the competition the work had to be executed outdoors from real life without using photographs, and paintings had to be started and entirely completed on August 9th and 10th. The final paintings had to be ready to hang (framed and wired) and could measure a max of 16″ x 20″ unframed.
The event resulted in an impressive collection of works which were exhibited in the gallery and available for purchase. It’s nice to have a strong grouping of paintings depicting our picturesque city because they often charm Old Town residents and tourists.
NOAPS Best of America 2023 Juried Exhibition is on display now through Sunday, September 10th. Click here to view the show online.
Principle Gallery 