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 2021 membership is about 150, 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.
News & Events
2022 Art Materials Scholarships
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OPM and Wet Paint have teamed up again to offer Art Materials Scholarships, including a $200 gift card for art supplies at Wet Paint, plus art materials contributed by suppliers. Three candidates will be selected to receive a scholarship. Candidate must be a Minnesota high school senior who excels and plans to pursue excellence in fine art painting. This opportunity has been created for economically disadvantaged students who have experienced individual hardship or bias as a barrier to accessing art materials and extracurricular arts opportunities. Candidates are nominated by their high school art teacher or other arts instructor or mentor. Nominations are open until the scholarship limit is met. If more than three nominations are received, qualifying recipients will be selected at random.
To nominate a student, use this form: |
Inaugural Scholarship Winner Avniel Green
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Winter Paint-Outs during 2022 Art Shanty Projects
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OPM has received a $800 grant to deploy painters for winter painting demonstrations again in 2022 for Art Shanty Projects' on-ice program! OPM members are invited to demonstrate the joys and challenges of winter plein air painting on Bde Unma (Lake Harriet) in the shanty village accessed from Lake Harriet Bandshell Park from 12-3pm. Our theme this year is "Color Harmony:" how we find it in a winter landscape and how we organize it in a painting. Sign up to paint on Sunday, January 23 and/or Saturday, January 29 to receive alerts and updates about weather, parking, tips from ASP, and any social gatherings afterward.
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2017 Art Shanty Village by Pam Kurtz
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Structural Minnesota: Plein Air and Studio Paintings at 801 Gallery
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801 Gallery at 801 Washington Lofts, a condominium association in the North Loop district of Minneapolis, is mounting an architecture-themed art exhibit including photos of designs by Minneapolis architect Garth Rockcastle and paintings of uniquely Minnesotan structures from Outdoor Painters of Minnesota. The association's Aesthetics Committee will hire professionals to hang the show, will host a reception for the exhibit opening, and will not handle sales or charge a commission but will publish a prospectus and price list with contact information for participating artists to promote sales.
2022 OPM members are invited to submit a large plein air or studio painting (minimum height/width 12" or equivalent, maximum height/width 48") with accompanying explanatory image such as in situ photo, value study, or field sketch to display in the prospectus. Subject matter should be structural and uniquely Minnesotan: fish houses, Art Shanty Projects, mansions from the Guilded Age, State Fair structures, skyscrapers or skyways – all kinds of structures are eligible. Paintings must be completed from direct observation and not only from photographs. Paint-outs may be suggested/hosted and published on OPM's calendar and Facebook page. 801 Gallery at 801 Washington Lofts 801 Washington Avenue Minneapolis, MN 55401 DEADLINE to Sign Up: January 29, 2022 2022 Exhibit Dates: February 26 to June 24 (end date in June TBD) |
Up to 49 large paintings may be displayed in bay areas of the 801 Gallery's second floor.
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2022 Winter Plein Air Retreat
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We are thrilled to return to YMCA Camp Menogyn in 2022 for our traditional Winter Plein Air Retreat with Friday night reception and exhibit afterward at Johnson Heritage Post Art Gallery (JHP). Menogyn is located near an entry to the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness off the Gunflint Trail. Painters drive to the parking lot at 55 Menogyn Trail, then haul gear in sleds across frozen Bearskin Lake to the lodge and cabins at Menogyn. We sleep in bunkbeds in heated cabins with electricity; toilet facilities are heated and unheated outdoor pit toilets, except in the dining hall which has two bathrooms with flush toilets. We paint outside every day and relax in the cozy dining hall, enjoying family-style meals prepared by Menogyn staff. On Thursday evening we have a traditional Finnish Sauna with plunge into a hole in Bearskin Lake. This is not to be missed! Cost per person is $385, which includes five nights' lodging at Menogyn and all meals. Dog-sledding may be added for an additional fee. Campers are encouraged to book a Friday night stay in Grand Marais after our reception at JHP. The exhibit is displayed through March, with a volunteer pickup crew returning to retrieve paintings by artists who request it.
**COVID-19 vaccination is required for all participants. Our group will have the whole camp to ourselves. In case of cancellation, registration fees are fully refundable less any applicable PayPal fee up until arrival. YMCA Camp Menogyn 55 Menogyn Trail Grand Marais, MN Retreat Dates: February 27 – March 4, 2022 JHP Exhibit Dates: March 4 – 27, 2022 Cost per person: $385 Dog-sledding activity fee: $90 |
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