Musing on my emotional response to the landscape

Reykjavik, Iceland

I've spent hundreds of hours painting the landscape on location.  Early on it was a pursuit to make my painting look like the subject.  There was so much to take in and all the while the light, tones and colors were changing; so many details I had to get down to copy the scene.  Although stressful, it forced me to respond intuitively.  Over the years, this intuition has become the stronger force in my work pulling me to capture the feeling of the scene rather than simply its likeness.  Now I ponder the success of my painting by the connection I had with the scene and how I communicated my emotional response to it rather than my ability to match the scene color for color, tone for tone.  These are the paintings that take me back to that place where I can hear the birds chattering at one another and the squirrel barking an alert of the fox slinking through the tall grasses.  I can once again feel the heat of the radiating sun drawing beads of sweat from my skin and then suddenly the respite of cool shade courtesy of the sole cloud passing in front of it.

Scott Ruthven

Painting Reykjavik Harbor - Scott Ruthven

New Ultimate Plein Air Gear Video

My students always tell me how much they love the part of my workshops when I go through my plein air gear.  With so many gear options to choose from, it can be daunting to take the leap and try plein air painting.

So, after months of filming and editing, I have released a full-featured, 38 minute long video where I show you everything I take in my pack to paint on location in oils.

Now everyone has access to this part of my workshops without the cost of actually attending a workshop.  And...I'm making the video very inexpensive so anyone can afford it!  After all, my goal is to create more joy in our world by creating beautiful art and teaching others how to do the same.  With the information in this video, you'll have the courage and confidence to experience the joy of plein air painting.

"From backpacks to brushes, paints to pochade boxes, and everything in between!"

Click the link below to learn all about the video and to purchase it if you so choose.

Click here for more info --->  Scott's Ultimate Plein Air Gear Video