Next week the Duluth Art Institute will be hosting its second annual outdoor painting festival, Plein Air Duluth: Paint du Nord, from July 10 – 16, 2016.

The photos here are from last year’s event.

Forty artists from Minnesota and beyond have been selected to participate in the festival. En Plein Air means “in the open air,” and artists will work outdoors to quickly capture the landscape in shifting, natural light. Many will post their painting locations on social media, using the hashtag #DuluthPleinAir16, so that anyone can watch their work progress.

Duluth artists participating in the event include:
Matt Kania, Lee Englund, Adam Swanson, Michelle Wegler, Bob Pokorney and Lisa Stauffer.

There is an open invitation for public paricpiation the evening of July 13, at Midtown Park. The festival will culminate in an exhibition on view in DAI Galleries through September 9.

The juror for the exhibit will be Dan Mondloch, who was awarded first place by Andy Evansen at last year’s festival.

Plein Air Duluth: Paint du Nord Schedule
Festival: July 10 – 16, 2016
Quick Paint: July 13, 6 – 7:30 pm, Midtown Park, free and open to the public
Opening Reception: July 15, 5 – 7 pm, free and open to the public
Exhibition: July 15 – September 9, 2016, John Steffl Gallery & Corridor Gallery

Photos are courtesy of the Duluth Art Institute. See more photos of the painting in progress in this Facebook gallery, and see more photos from the exhibition in this Facebook gallery.

For anyone not familiar with the plein air process, a few years ago The Playlist on WDSE did a great job capturing the action of another event in Grand Marais.