Enjoy Plein Air Artworks From The National Parks Through August 26

These are two of the paintings that are on display as part of a plein air exhibition on art in the national parks at the Booth Western Art Museum in Cartersville, Georgia.

Top photo: © Gay Faulkenberry, Touch of Spring, Alley Mill, Ozark National Scenic Riverway, MO; Courtesy of Plein Air Painters of America

Bottom photo: © Lynn Gertenback, Serene Canyon, Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area, CA; Courtesy of Plein Air Painters of America

Plein air artists, who head to the fields, mountains, and lakeshores to capture the settings in front of them on canvas, produce impressive, moving works that can provide unique perspectives on the settings.

Through late August you can enjoy some great plein air works created in the national parks if you find yourself in Georgia.

With the support of the National Parks Conservation Association, a collection of plein air masterpieces will be on display in the Booth Western Art Museum in Cartersville, Georgia.

American Legacy: Our National Parks, On Location with The Plein-Air Painters of America, showcases the works of 38 members of the Plein-Air Painters of America.

"En plein air" is French for “in the open air,” and is often used to describe painters who work outdoors, on location.

The 100 paintings in the exhibition depict sites from coast to coast, border to border, and from the earliest park designated to one of the most recent. The exhibition is a “field journal” experience that draws viewers into seasonal and daily experiences of color and light rendered in pigment on paper and canvas.

This nearly decade-by-decade documentation affirms the continuing desire of the American people to protect unique geographic and geological wonders as national parks, preserves, recreation areas, monuments, seashores, parkways, rivers, and historical sites.

Tom Roberson, the museum’s director of development expects the exhibition to draw more than 25,000 visitors.

The NPCA is a co-sponsor of the exhibition and NPCA members can receive one free adult admission per family if they have a copy of the organization's Spring and Summer 2012 Southeast Field Report. Regular admission to Booth Museum is $10 for adults, $8 for seniors (65+), $7 for students, and free for children under 12.

While at the museum, you can also experience America’s Story by exploring the Booth’s other galleries featuring Western American art, Presidential letters and portraits, Western movie posters, Civil War art, Native American artifacts and more.

For additional information and directions to Booth Western Art Museum in Cartersville, Georgia, visit www.boothmuseum.org