Five new paintings have been installed in OPM's airport display in Terminal 1 of MSP Airport.  Congratulations and thanks to Sue Wipf, Marla Mulaney, Susan McLean-Keeney, and Joshua Cunningham for their beautiful paintings and for serving as "ambassadors" of plein air painting in Minnesota!

OPM has a one-year contract with MSP Airport Foundation to display four quarterly, seasonal exhibits of paintings by OPM members who are pursing a career of plein air painting.  Look for the display case just inside security in the main shopping area of Terminal 1, near the G concourse.  Private tours are also available by apointment.

OPM's first year-long partnership with a city convention and visitor bureau culminated in a reception and exhibit of paintings depicting favorite parks, businesses, and vistas in the City of Burnsville.

Juror Mary Pettis awarded prizes for first, second, and third place, plus two honorable mentions.  An additional Best in Show award was added thanks to a $300 award donation from the family of Sandy Koeger, who passed away in July.

The show in the main gallery at Ames Center will be on display through October 22.

OPM member Chris Copeland won the award for Best Sense of Place sponsored by OPM at Plein Air Grand Marais on September 16.  Congratulations, Chris!  The show at Johnson Heritage Post in Grand Marais runs through November 13.  Be sure to stop by if you're up north for fall colors.  The representation of top painters and fine paintings is world class and worth a special trip.

At our September 18 meeting, OPM voted to create a people's choice award in memory of OPM member and arts supporter Sandy Koeger to be given at our annual Frameworks Salon show on December 10, 2016.  First place of $200 and second place of $100 will be awarded after tallying the popular vote of all those in attendance at the opening reception.  Stay tuned for details, and watch for a Sign Up invitation to participate in the show.

OPM's annual award for Best Landscape Painting at the Minnesota State Fair Fine Arts exhibit goes to Minneapolis painter Carl Bretzke for his oil painting titled "Behind the Massage Parlor."  Congratulations!

OPM made a commitment this year to sponsor a $100 "Best Sense of Place" award for each of Minnesota's four plein air competitions:  Grand Marais, Duluth, Aitkin, and Red Wing.  The award is for the painting that best captures the instantly recognizable spirit of a place painted in the competition.  Awards are administered by the sponsor.  Here are three of the summer's award winners so far:

Grand Marais Plein Air is coming up in September.

OPM used its grant from Art Shanty Projects to offer a painting workshop with renowned Minnesota painter-instructor Mary Pettis.  It was a spectacular day, filled with invaluable information and individual critiques.  We hope to offer workshops to members on a quarterly basis if a grant for the purpose is awarded.  Keep your fingers crossed; we'll find out in June.

Mary wowed us with this demonstration of painting water based on a hypothetical scene described by a participant.  She painted this from her imagination in just a few minutes..... then wiped it away.

OPM is thrilled to join Art Shanty Projects again by deploying plein air painters during the art festival on ice on weekends in February.  We received a performance grant to schedule three 90-minute Quick Paint demonstrations and invite painters to depict the scenes throughout the event.  Here's a clip of the scene on the sunny but cold afternoon of February 13.

We had a fantastic week of winter painting again this year, our seventh.  Here are some photos from our expeditions and pop-up exhibit at the Grand Marais Art Colony.  Visit OPM's Facebook group to see more paintings and pictures, and save the dates for next year!  January 22-27, 2017.

Summer 2015 was a busy one for Minnesota's outdoor painters.  Here are some photos from OPM events: