This online resource connects the public with visual, literary, and performing artists and is a valuable resource for the community. Sharing your contact information is not required to be included in this Directory, though providing some details will help the public connect with you. 

PALOUSE PLEIN AIR: September 11 - 19, 2023
Plein Air is an annual painting event that takes place every September, with experiences including painting workshops and a juried exhibition at the Third Street Gallery inside Moscow City Hall. 

Historic Moscow, Idaho and the beautiful Palouse are the perfect destination for plein air artists, and the annual Palouse Plein Air painting event connects artists with the region’s landscape and arts culture. French for “open air,” the phrase “plein air” (pronounced plen-air) describes the act of painting outdoors. The outdoor experience on the Palouse is particularly rich, as its rolling hills, rivers, mountains, fields, farms, and homes tell the long history of the landscape.

Guided by the vision of the Moscow Arts Commission and University of Idaho art professor Aaron Cordell Johnson, Palouse Plein Air began in 2010, and the event continues to grow. A collaboration of community partners makes this growth possible; the City of Moscow Arts Department and the University of Idaho College of Art + Architecture work together to make a great event for artists and art lovers alike.

Important Dates
April 28 – September 7
Registration will be available online via Submittable. No emailed or paper registrations will be accepted. The registration form is available via this link: https://moscowarts.submittable.com/submit

September 11 - 19  
Painting Period in Latah, Nez Perce, Whitman, and Benewah Counties

September 20
9:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m.
Artwork Drop-off at the Third Street Gallery, located inside Moscow City Hall at 206 E Third St.
7:00 p.m.
Juror Lecture on the UI Campus

September 21
10:00 a.m. - 12:00 p.m.
Juror Demonstration at the UI Arboretum
5:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m.
Reception & Awards at the Third Street Gallery

September 21 - October 6
8:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m., Monday - Friday
Exhibition open at the Third Street Gallery

October 9   
9:00 a.m. – 2:00 p.m.
Artwork Pick-up at the Third Street Gallery

Eligibility
Palouse Plein Air is a painting competition open to all artists 18 years-of-age or older. All painting media are eligible for competition, including gouache, watercolor, acrylic, oil, and pastel.

Registration and Fees

$35 per participant or $30 per student participant (18 years-of-age and older.) Online registration is available at: https://moscowarts.submittable.com/submit

Painting and Exhibition Guidelines

• Following registration, participants paint out-of-doors at any location of their choosing within Latah, Nez Perce, Whitman, and Benewah counties. Participants have the option to paint on all days of the competition or any combination of the competition days. No use of electronic, pictorial, or other aids is allowed. All work must be done on location by the individual artist.
• Each artist will submit photos of their completed works along with inventory information and images of the painting on location. This submission will be completed using a Submittable form to be provided by City staff following the close of event registration. This procedure not only generates content for the publicly-viewable online gallery, but also authenticates that each piece was made on location during the Palouse Plein Air competition period. 
• Participants are invited to deliver finished entries to the Third Street Gallery inside Moscow City Hall on September 20 from 9 a.m. – 12 p.m. No early drop-off or pick-up of artworks will be allowed. Artworks that arrive at any time other than the stated drop-off period will not be exhibited. 
• Up to 3 (three) paintings will be accepted. Painting sizes accepted will be up to 72” total unframed perimeter inches or smaller. (e.g. a 16” x 20” has a 72” perimeter: 20” x 2 + 16” x 2 = 72”)
• Artworks must be presented for exhibition in sturdy framing with a wire hanger (no sawtooth hangers). Please see the Third Street Gallery presentation requirements for an illustration of wire installation standards. Works submitted without proper framing and wire hangers will not be exhibited. 
• NEW for 2023: Best Lil’ Painting. This new award category celebrates the little things. To participate in the Best Lil’ Painting award category, participants must select “Yes” to receive a welcome package in the form below. The welcome package will include a little canvas and a little watercolor board. Artists are invited to submit one little painting for this award category, and this submission will count toward the artist’s overall allowed total of up to 3 (three) paintings. The little paintings can be presented without frames or wires, but must be labeled as described below.
• Please label the back of each artwork with the following: artist name, artwork title, medium, and date.
• Event organizers reserve the right to determine suitability of all works shown in the Palouse Plein Air exhibition.
• Works may be offered for sale, and any sales will be handled by Third Street Gallery staff. Artwork sales will be subject to a 20% Gallery commission and Idaho State sales tax.
• Works will remain at Third Street Gallery for the entire length of the exhibition.
• Artists shall release the City of Moscow to use photographs and/or video of them and their exhibited art works, for future publicity and promotional purposes without copyright, use fees, or charges.

Juror and Awards
William E. Elston is the 2023 Palouse Plein Air juror. Elston is an artist currently residing in Snohomish, WA, though his travels as an artist have taken him to Los Angeles, New York, Boston, and Spokane. He studied painting at Fort Wright College of the Holy Names in Spokane and at California College of Arts and Crafts in Oakland prior to earning a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from Fort Wright in 1975. Elston's work has been widely collected in the United States and in Europe, and is included in many public, private and corporate collections. These include Jundt Art Museum at Gonzaga University, Microsoft, Hewlett Packard, McGraw Hill, American Express, Ashforth Pacific, Miller Nash LLP, Swedish Hospital in Seattle, University Hospital, Evergreen Hospital, Bill and Melinda Gates, the City of Seattle and the City of Portland. 

About William E. Elston’s work:

I grew up between small town life, rural farmlands and the city. I've never been completely happy in one environment or the other, but I do find some joy when I explore the relationships between the three. I began drawing and painting landscapes in high school, often sitting in the woods with charcoal and paper trying to mimic the rhythms of light and shadow, growth and decay. On a trip to Victoria BC I sketched the Empress Hotel, using colored chalk and turpentine washes. Architecture was and is a fascination, but more as a reflection of human intention rather than as feats of engineering. 

I've spent a life painting, often against the grain, and I'm happy to see young people taking up the brush and engaging in very careful looking. Even a static scene can only reveal its riches with the tribute of concentration. I've often thought about the purpose of art, as one also questions the purpose of life. 

Elston will adjudicate the exhibition at the Third Street Gallery and will offer a lecture and painting workshop open to all registered participants. View his works online: 

williamelston.com

student.williamelston.com

FB: @william.elston.fine.art

Insta: @williame.elston

Awards will be announced during the artist reception at the Third Street Gallery. Winning participants need not be present to receive awards. Paintings will be available for sale and are eligible for the following cash and other recognition awards:

• 1st Place ($400)
• 2nd Place ($200)
• 3rd Place ($100)
• Best Palouse
• Best Downtown
• Best Historical
• Best Lil’ Painting
• Student Awards (2)
• Honorable Mentions (2)
• City of Moscow Purchase Award (1)

Registration Support for Palouse Plein Air 2022
Megan Cherry
Arts Manager
206 East Third Street
Moscow, ID 83843
208.883.7036
mcherry@ci.moscow.id.us

Amy Petit
Administrative Specialist - Arts
206 East Third Street
Moscow, ID 83843
208.883.7000 ext. 7204
apetit@ci.moscow.id.us