California artist Richard Oliver creates beautiful En Plein Air landscape paintings that perfectly match the surrounding natural environments that he chooses as his subjects. Oliver, who is the father of two beautiful boys with special needs, finds that painting in the open air has done wonders for his physical and spiritual health. He also states that although the “picture in picture” effect is fun, it is not the point of his outdoor work.
Back when I first started Plein air painting and took too much gear, too many paints, and slaved for too long to get the Picture in Picture to line up. …With all the shadows and angles of sunlight I’m never able to get it to work right away, some don’t work at all, others need a little TLC in post [production] to balance the contrasts but ultimately it’s not my end game, it’s just a gimmick to get some attention. I never intended it to be a fad or a ‘thing’. Moving forward I’m hoping the quality of what’s inside the edges of the canvas is what captures attention. …Being outdoors, painting from life has been a game changer for me. Both in terms of mental health and physical health.
via My Modern Met
