Lively Art Events Around Every Corner & Fun to Fill Every Hour
July 19-21 - Easton, MD
The final weekend of Plein Air Easton truly is an art lover’s extravaganza. Friday’s festivities begin with a ticketed art demonstration by Master Jove Wang at 9 a.m. at the Avalon Theatre. During this rare opportunity to watch him create, Master Wang will narrate as he paints a portrait of Tilghman Island waterman Johnny Kinnamon. The Local Color exhibition also opens Friday with an awards presentation at the Tidewater Inn. The show features a range of talented local artists and is open for visitors throughout the weekend.
Be sure to reserve your ticket for Friday evening’s Collectors Party, where you’ll be the first to see the competition paintings and attend the 2019 awards ceremony. A painting sells every 45 seconds for nearly 2 hours at this exciting event, so bring your wallet and get ready to take home a piece of history. As a ticket holder, you can even apply the equivalent of your ticket price to art purchases all weekend. Plein Air Easton’s crowning event takes place in two locations—the Academy Art Museum and the Waterfowl Festival Building, across the street from one another in downtown Easton.
Excitement fills the air on Saturday, July 20, when hundreds of painters converge on downtown Easton for the festival’s Quick Draw Competition and Sale. Anyone with 10 bucks and a little ambition can enter this famous timed event. Participating artists have two hours, from 10 a.m.-12 p.m., to create their best works—and all of this takes place in downtown Easton. When time’s up, the artists line the street, gathering for an exhibition, sale, and awards ceremony on Harrison Street.
This is the perfect time to circle through the downtown galleries, pop in at the PAE Information Center at the Avalon Theatre, shop the Artisans Marketplace, and search out any hidden gems you may have missed at the Competition Galleries at the Academy Art Museum and Waterfowl Building. Be sure to make dinner reservations early at one of Easton’s downtown restaurants, then enjoy live music and dancing in the street at the Tidewater Inn Concert Series. Legendary painter Raul Middleman will also be speaking at a ticketed event, where he will show excerpts from an upcoming movie documenting his life.
Lines form early on Sunday as collectors vie to be the first to view the Small Painting Sunday Exhibition and Sale at the Waterfowl Building. All competition artists create a 6 in. x 8 in. painting for this event, which opens to the public at 10 a.m. Enjoy breakfast treats, coffee, mimosas, and Bloody Marys while you shop.
Young painters have a chance to shine with art stations for kids and the PAE Next Generation Quick Draw competition, exhibition and sale. And don’t miss the Judge’s Talk at 2 p.m. at the Waterfowl Building. This year’s competition judge, David Levy, will explain the thought process behind his choice of winners. Levy served as president of the Parson School of Design for more than 20 years and president of the Corcoran Gallery of Art in D.C. for another 15 years.
Insider’s Tip: The Avalon Foundation staff and volunteers will store your Plein Air Easton purchases until Sunday when you’re ready to pack up and head home.