Oregon Outback Plein Air Workshop (September 5–12, 2025)

During this intensive 7-night workshop we will explore the principles of landscape painting; including composition, value, depth, and color. We will paint directly from life in the incredible wild spaces around Summer Lake and the Lake County region. This workshop will immerse students in the incredible natural spaces around PLAYA and Lake County, and encourage diligent observation in order to portray the grandeur and nuance of the high desert. The goal of Plein Air painting is not only to create a painting, but to truly understand the way that color and light interact with the landscape in ways that only the human eye and intellect working in direct synchronicity can detect. 

Depending on weather conditions, additional class painting locations may include Fremont point, Picture Rock, Fort Rock, or other incredible natural spaces within an hour drive from the PLAYA campus. We will carpool to these various sites. Travel to these locations will be flexible and determined by the interests of the class group. 

We will paint together through 5 days of exciting demonstration and instruction, and the final class day will be open to exploration. We’ll spend our first day on the PLAYA campus, concentrating on fundamentals with thumbnail drawings and monochromatic paintings. During the following days, we’ll work with a split primary palette and learn to record some of the subtleties of nature while altering what we see to create compelling images. This class will also touch on essential techniques of oil painting such as paint application, edge control, and color mixing. 

Why paint in Plein Air? Instructor Jordan Walker says, “As an instructor, my passion for natural history, geology, and ecology always bleeds through while I teach, and I will discuss the species that surround us while we work, as well as the geological forces that shaped the ground we stand on. It is my belief that an understanding of these topics strengthens one’s connection to the features they are painting in a landscape, and leads to a greater appreciation for the landscape and a more interesting concept for the painting.”

By the end of this workshop, students will have gained a greater understanding of the fundamentals of composition, value, depth, and color. They will have spent time becoming more comfortable with painting outdoors, and appreciate the benefits of working from direct observation versus photo reference. Students will learn new techniques for paint application, edge control, and color mixing, which they can adapt to their own practice. Students receive tailored advice which are recommended ways to improve their work beyond the scope of the workshop going forward.


Click each cabin below for the full workshop agenda/details and cabin descriptions.

Cancellation policy: $50 cancellation fee. Six or less days before arrival NO refund; seven-14 days before arrival 50% refund; 15-28 days before 75% refund.

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