The Olana
Plein Air Festival
Presented by Drawing America
Photo Credits:
Peter Aaron/OTTO & Beth Schneck Photo
The Olana
The Olana Plein Air Festival
During this day-long festival open to artists of all skill levels, participants are invited to bring their own supplies and materials to paint outdoors throughout Olana. This event is held in partnership with The Olana Partnership, Olana State Historic Site, and Drawing America.
Overlooking the Hudson River, with 250-acres of artist-designed landscape and sweeping views of the Catskills, Olana is the perfect place to get artistic inspiration! Join us on Saturday, September 25 for the Olana Plein Air Festival.
Free lunchtime lecture by William Coleman – Olana Director of Collections and Exhibitions.
Free tote bag with goodies from our sponsors (while they last)!
We would like to thank
The Rebecca and Peter Rosow Fund, Susan and Michael Hershfield,Daly Gonzalez,Laura Bruckmann,Mary Jo Roberts, Michael DiRuggiero,Julie Johnson,Mary Phillips,Bianca Dunn,Selva Nebbia, Marc Cooper, Kelly Cunningham, Jeffrey DiGangi, Alexander Levenson,Gary Stavella, All of Our Anonymous Donors
for their generous support.
General Admission Tickets and Plein Air Workshops
General Admission Tickets: Participants may join us on-site for a full day of painting by purchasing a general admission ticket.
Workshop Tickets: Participants may register for artist-led workshops and events throughout the day.Â
Support The Festival: Our mandate is to make the event accessible to the widest possible audience.
The Rain Date for This Event is Sunday, September 26th
We can’t wait to see you! Join us for a full day of outdoor painting with old friends and new ones. This ticket allows access to the Plein Air Festival…
In this workshop, students will work to capture early-day light on a toned background so they don't have to compete with the brightness of the canvas.
This workshop will focus on accurately drawing and painting the figure outdoors. The live model will sustain a single pose for the duration of the session.
This workshop will focus on traditional watercolor techniques while using modern tools like cellphone cameras for image selection.
This workshop will introduce you to a process for painting scenes using a combination of on-location drawings and photographic reference.
During this session, we’ll practice the art of field sketching using ink and watercolor to hone your observational and artistic skills...
Grab your sketchbook and explore Olana’s woods, pond, and fields with Jean Mackay, author and illustrator of The Nature Explorer’s Sketchbook.
In this session we will paint on location, capturing what we see as we explore picture-making components like color, shapes, and composition.
This workshop will focus on accurately drawing and painting the figure outdoors. The live model will sustain a single pose for the duration of the session.
This workshop will focus on traditional watercolor techniques while using modern tools like cellphone cameras for image selection.
In this workshop, students will work to capture late-day light on a toned surface so they don't have to compete with the brightness of the canvas.
This Event is Made Possible by a Partnership Between
The Amazing Olana
The Amazing Details
The Designed Lake
Morning Light in The Garden
The Olana Bell Tower
The Olana Expansion to 250 Acres
Frederic Joseph Church, Plan of Olana, 1886. Ink and watercolor on paper, 22 1/8 x 36 ¼ in. OL.1984.39.a, courtesy of Olana State Historic Site, New York State Office of Parks, Recreation, and Historic Preservation.
The Interiors
Church Family Skating
Unknown photographer, Skating on the pond at Olana, Thanksgiving 1892. Photographic print mounted on cardboard, 4 ¼ x 5 ¼ in. OL.1985.922, courtesy of Olana State Historic Site, New York State Office of Parks, Recreation, and Historic Preservation.
Drawing of the South Facade
Frederic Edwin Church, Southwest Façade, Olana, c. 1870. Ink, pencil, and watercolor on paper, 13 x 21 15/16 in. OL.1980.40(R), courtesy of Olana State Historic Site, New York State Office of Parks, Recreation, and Historic Preservation.
Olana Vaux House Study
Vaux, Withers & Co. Architects, Study of a House for F.E. Church Esq. at Hudson N.Y., May 28, 1870. Pencil and ink on paper, 10 ¼ x 13 ¾ in. OL.1982.1107, courtesy of Olana State Historic Site, New York State Office of Parks, Recreation, and Historic Preservation.Â