Outdoor Painters of Minnesota is a 501(c)3 charitable nonprofit formed to promote and share the practice of outdoor (plein air) painting. We are governed by an all-volunteer board of directors. Our 2022 membership is almost 200, and we welcome new members of all backgrounds at every level of experience. OPM strives to coordinate outdoor painting activities, develop opportunities to exhibit together, educate both artists and non-artists in plein air painting, and inspire awareness of the beauty found in nature through painting outdoors.
Email us with questions about OPM and about opportunities to volunteer.
Your contributions directly support our educational workshops and exhibit opportunities.
Your $40 calendar-year membership provides access to paint-outs, workshops, exhibits, and events.

News | Exhibits | Events

Call for Artists: Minnesota Plein Air Collective (MPAC) Inaugural Exhibit & Paint-Out

OPM has teamed up with Red Wing Arts and Art of the Lakes to promote our annual plein air events in a combined spring exhibit of paintings.

Our inaugural exhibit will be hosted by Villa Maria in Frontenac, Minnesota, near Red Wing. Follow the links below for details and to register to hang up to 2 paintings. Space is limited to 60 artists hanging 2 paintings each. Preference is given to artists submitting paintings from the last 2 years of Plein Air Grand Marais, Red Wing Plein Air, and Prairie Lakes en Plein Air.
Important Dates: 
Extended to January 25, 2023: Sign Up Deadline 
March 25, 2023: Installation at the Villa Maria
April 22, 2023: Paint-Out and Preview Event
Changed to May 13, 2023: Public Reception & Villa Tours

Winter Paint-Outs with Art Shanty Projects
Get your winter painting gear ready! OPM is back in 2023 with a grant from Art Shanty Projects to deploy winter plein air painters for winter painting demonstrations and supervision of Berton Box painting pochades at Harriet Bandshell park during ASP's weekend festival.

Our theme this year is The Color of Winter. Our dates and times are:

Sunday, January 29 from 11:00am to 2:00pm
Sunday, February 12 from 11:00am to 2:00pm
This year we're hanging a clothesline gallery of paintings: bring your past years' work to display along with the canvases by contributing visitors using oil pastels at our Berton Box pochades.

2023 Winter Plein Air Retreat

OPM's annual Winter Plein Air Retreat is scheduled for March 5-10, 2023. We meet in Grand Marais on Sunday, March 5 at 4:00pm and drive in a caravan from Java Moose coffee shop up the Gunflint Trail to the parking lot at Menogyn, then send our gear by snowmobile sled and walk 1/2 mile across Bearskin Lake to the lodge and cabins. We leave after breakfast on Friday, March 10 and mount an exhibit of our paintings at Johnson Heritage Post Art Gallery in Grand Marais. A public reception is held from 5-7pm.

Cost: $425 per person includes 5 nights lodging and all meals. Dog-sledding is availble for an additional $15.

2023 Art Materials Scholarships
Nominations by art teachers, instructors or mentors are open! OPM and Wet Paint are teaming up again to offer Art Materials Scholarships for high school seniors interested in plein air painting, each including a gift card for art supplies at Wet Paint plus art materials contributed by suppliers. Winners will be announced in April.

Special thanks to our partner and sponsor, Wet Paint Art Materials & Framing in St. Paul, for helping create this opportunity for young artists.
2022 Scholarship Winners with OPM board members at Wet Paint for presentation on April 2, 2022