Plein Air Festival winners now on display

Patrick Saunders won the top prize in the Plein Air Festival for this painting of Penn Valley Park.

Patrick Saunders won the top prize in the Plein Air Festival for this painting of Penn Valley Park.

The winners of the Plein Air Art Festival last week in Penn Valley Park are now displayed at the Buttonwood Gallery in Union Hill. Thirty one artists joined in the competition to capture the park in the tradition of Monet and impressionists, “en plein air.”

The winners include: Best of Show, $1,000, Patrick Saunders for “Painting the Pioneer Mother;” 1st Place, $750, Nyle Gordon for “Strong and the Brave”; 2nd Place, $500, Ken Chapin for “Morning Constitutional:” 3rd Place, $250, R. Gregory Summers for “No Lasting Peace;” Quick Paint at the Pioneer Mother area, $500,Craig Lueck for watercolor of the downtown Kansas City skyline; Quick Paint at the Firefighters’ Memorial, $500, Patrick Saunders for “Memorial Waters;” Quick Paint at the valley, $500, Nyle Gordon for “Under the Willow.”

Phil Starke from Tucson, Arizona, was the show and awards juror. A nationally recognized plein air painter, Starke teaches plein air workshops around the country, at the Scottsdale Artists School and the Tucson Art Academy.

The Penn Valley Park Plein Air Fest artwork is on exhibit through June 27th at Buttonwood Art Space, 3013 Main Street, Kansas City, Missouri 64108.

Photos of the event on Instagram

Photos of the event on Facebook

The Penn Valley Park Conservancy initiated this inaugural Plein Air Fest to showcase the park and its features, to encourage people to visit the park, and to raise funds for park maintenance and improvements. A portion of all artwork sales goes toward continuing the work of the conservancy.

Penn Valley Park Conservancy is a 501(c) (3) corporation formed in March 2010 by community volunteers. Its goal is to preserve and enhance historic Penn Valley Park as a vital urban green space and as a recreational and cultural resource for the enjoyment of all through education, advocacy and public/private partnerships. To do this, PVPC acts as a collective voice for stakeholders and as a leader in parks and recreation management for Penn Valley Park by connecting people to green space, history, active living, and the community in a financially sustainable manner.

 

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