Singer Castle and Plein Air Painters

Alexandria Bay-(August 11, 2010), Singer Castle and Plein Air Painters Thousand Islands Region (PAPTIR) will conduct an “en plein air” painting (French for open air) event on Wednesday September 1, rain date September 2^nd.  The event is open to all artists. A broader definition of the term includes painting from life or sight without the use of photographs. With this in mind a limited number of artists may set up inside to do interiors.  It provides the opportunity to showcase details of the grounds and Singer Castle from an up close perspective as well as enjoy a day at one of the Regions beautiful attractions.

To register and get more details contact Robert P.  Hedden at PAPTIR@gmail.com or 315-482-9352. Parking and a boat shuttle is available from the Schermerhorn Harbor and there is a boat shuttle from Alexandria Bay. The Schermerhorn shuttle takes about twenty minutes and departs 10:30AM to 3:30PM every hour on the half hour. Returns are on the hour with the last at 5:00PM. The fee is $15 for the shuttle which includes the round trip. The Castle entrance fee is waived for participating artists and no formal tour will be provided. Artists must agree to a group photo and photos of their work for publicity.

PAPTIR was formed in 2009 to foster painting in the outdoors as opposed to studio painting from photographs. Plein air artists complete their paintings on site, sometimes using the work along with photos and sketches to complete larger studio works. The group has over twenty artists on its register and typically around eight attend a scheduled paintout every second Wednesday from Spring to Fall.  Some who are year round St. Lawrence River residents paint outdoors all year long, weather permitting. There are no dues, meetings, officers, or directors, just “birds of a feather get together”. In addition to Plein Air Contests supported by local ARTS Organizations for organization and publicity and business sponsors for prize money, PAPTIR holds group Art Shows. The most recent show was August 6-7 at the Macsherry library. Another day show is planned for Saturday September 18th at the Antique Boat Museum in Clayton NY. Interested artists can contact Robert P. Hedden at the above email address or phone number to be included on the event email distribution list.

(This dispatch and picture was received directly from Dark Island today. Be sure to click on the beautiful aerial picture of Singer Castle above to see it large).