January 28, 2022

Plein Air Easton, the largest and most prestigious outdoor painting competition in the United States, is preparing for its 18th year this July. Each year, PAE chooses a single person to fulfill the role as juror whose sole responsibility is to evaluate nearly 1,000 images submitted for consideration from plein air painters around the world and then, from those images, select the competition artists who will head to Easton in July. This person becomes the judge for the competition in the following year. Relying on a single and unique juror ensures a clear and new curatorial perspective from year to year and has led to the discovery of fresh talent not just for Easton but the larger plein air movement. While this approach has been central to the Plein Air Easton’s vibrancy, it also means that the person selected as a juror must have exceptional credentials and an interesting perspective. 

PAE is pleased to announce that this year’s juror is Master Jove Wang. Master Wang will review PAE applications following the January 28th deadline for online entries. The official announcement for the 2022 class of competition artists will be made on February 11, 2022. 

Jove Wang was born in Jilin China in 1962. At the tender age of seven, he apprenticed with the master painter Gang Gu, subsequently studying at Jilin School of Art for three years and graduating in 1982. He was accepted into the most prestigious art institute of China, Zhejiang Academy of Fine Arts (now known as the China Academy of Art), and graduated as an honor student in 1988. He also received professional training from the Tokyo Academy of Fine Arts.

In 1990 he immigrated to the United States where he soon met with success. Immersing himself in the study and exploration of old Masters, he has established a career that has garnered him national recognition:

Awards

• Best of Show, California Art Club’s 88th Annual Gold Medal Juried Exhibition, 1997
• First Place, figure category, California Art Club’s 89th Annual Gold Medal Juried Exhibition, 1998
• Best of Show at the 8th Annual National Juried Exhibition of Oil Painters of America, 1999
• First Place at the prestigious Viewpoint 2000 Cincinnati Art Club Exhibition, 2000
• Plein Air Tucson 2000 Exhibit in Tucson (Grand Prize, Best of Mission, and Best Design/Architecture), 2000
• Best of Show and Artists' Choice Award, 2001 Carmel Art Festival, 2001
• Gold Medal Award, Japan Artist Association at Tokyo National Museum, "Young Man", 2008
• Best of Show and Artists Choice award, American Impressionist Society’s 22nd oil painting competition, 2021
• Best of Show, American Impressionist Society Annual All-Member online exhibition, 2021

Exhibits

• 11th National Exhibition of Fine Arts in China selected "A Day on the Silk Road", 2009
• Paintings exhibited in Pasadena Museum of California Art, the Pasadena Historical Museum, the Laguna Beach Art Museum, the Carnegie Art Museum in Oxnard, the Bowers Museum at Santa Ana, the Frederick R. Weisman Museum of Art at Pepperdine University in Malibu, Springville Museum of Art in Springville, Utah, and the Phippen Museum in Arizona
• Permanent Collections: Bowers Museum, the Bakersfield Museum of Art, the Mission San Juan Capistrano, and the Museum of Jilin, China

Wang is a Signature Member of the California Art Club. He has been teaching oil painting for over 20 years from his studio in California and enjoys exploring a vast range of portraiture, still-life painting, landscape and large scale works. Wang has spent some time in Easton over the last few years giving demos, teaching workshops and meeting collectors via his professional relationship with local gallery owner, Betty Huang of Studio B Art Gallery.

The competition judge for 2022 is Julia Marciari-Alexander, Executive Director & CEO of the Walters Art Museum. As the judge of this year’s competition, Marciari-Alexander will award all competition prizes during events taking place the final weekend of PAE festivities, July 21-24. She will also give a talk discussing her choices at the Judge’s Talk on Sunday, July 24 at 2pm. All PAE events are listed in the downloadable calendar at pleinaireaston.com and new content will be added continuously in the months to come.

Plein Air Easton is a leader and a catalyst in the development of the modern plein air movement. Many of the most important trends and the push for ever-higher standards in plein air painting have been forged in Easton through the intense competition among the top painters in the field.