The non-profit Downtown Driggs Association will celebrate its 15th Annual Plein Air Festival from July 22 through Aug. 1. The festival will bring 70 nationally acclaimed artists to paint in the great outdoors with special events throughout the week for the public to experience.
The French term, “plein air,” means painting in the open air outdoors. For this festival, artists can work with oil painting, watercolor or pastel. While plein air festivals are popular around the world, many artists enjoy coming to this valley to paint.
“Teton Valley is a truly extraordinary place for this kind of work because we have such a diversity of landscape that there's gorgeous mountains, waterways, working farms, meadows, forests, sagebrush in our historic downtown here in Driggs, all within a pretty small area,” said Lisa Simmons the executive director of Downtown Driggs Association.
The full schedule will include outdoor painting, workshops, collector events, music, theatre, exhibitions, paint outs and quick draws. The festival is free for the public to attend.
The artists will check in July 22; artwork will be for sale as soon as artists bring in their plein air paintings. Their canvases will be stamped to prove the art was painted during the festival.
“In the end, we'll have 500 paintings that have cycled through the festival,” Simmons said.
On July 26 from 6 to 8 p.m. during the Driggs Plein Air festival opening celebration, the Aaron Ashton Gypsy Jazz Band will play, and paintings will be for sale. There will be food and drinks to buy.
“This festival is great for emerging collectors, people who may not have a comprehensive art collection, but are interested in starting,” Simmons said.
On July 27 is the traditional Paint Out at the Grand Targhee Resort from 10 a.m. to noon. The artists will take the Dreamcatcher Lift and paint at the top of the mountain. The public is invited to watch and meet the artists.
The art will be placed in the gallery located on 60 South Main St. in Driggs as well as in a tent in the Driggs Plaza.
Quick Draws is another favorite event held July 28 from 7 to 11 a.m. in Downtown Driggs when artists will paint in downtown Driggs. Until 2 p.m. the public will vote for their favorite piece. This will be followed by the people’s choice Quick Draw awards.
On July 29, there will be another Quick Draw in the morning. At 6 p.m. Montana Shakespeare in the Parks will perform “Much Ado About Nothing” at the Teton County Courthouse lawn.
On July 30 when all the artists submit their four works, collectors can participate in the collector’s party from 5 to 6:30 p.m. in the Driggs City Gallery. John Lintott, a festival judge, will speak about the “influence of plein air painting on western art.”
The award ceremony is open for the public to attend on July 31 from 5 to 6 p.m.
One new award added this year is the nocturne award for a painting created in the evening that reflects the colors of the night hours.
For the Driggs Plein Air Festival, it is the second year they have introduced a jury application process. The festival received over 150 applicants; 70 artists were selected to participate.
“We've seen a lot of nationally or even globally known artists start to really join the competition and participate who may not have before because of this juried entry process and the quality of work is just incredible,” Simmons said.
The festival has allowed many emerging artists to become more established. Artists who did not make it can participate in workshops to improve their skills.
To learn more, go to downtowndriggs.org.