Who we are

Upland Plein Air is a fun, friendly, informal, and inclusive community of visual artists. Our members range in experience from beginners to professionals, and work in a variety of mediums — primarily oil, watercolor, pastels, printmaking, and drawing. We meet some 40 times a year to draw and paint outdoors; in the colder months, we find alternative educational and social opportunities. Our goal is to provide members with avenues to create, to learn, and to network and form friendships with other artists.

Our destinations include parks and forests, urban settings, buildings of architectural interest, public and private gardens, older neighborhoods, farms, cemeteries, historic sites, and other places of interest around south central Indiana. Most locations are in, or within 30 to 45 minutes of, Bloomington, with occasional ones further away. These paint outs and other activities – such as our exhibitions, semi-annual member meetings, and annual social – are driven by our members’ interests and are planned and hosted by members. Members attend as their schedules allow and their interests dictate.

Many paint outs are on Tuesday mornings, but times and days of the week can vary. Members have access to the annual calendar and receive emails in advance about weekly activities, including key points of interest at the destination, directions, accessibility, and availability of restrooms and parking.

A calendar of upcoming events is located in the password-protected “Members Only” section. However, you may come to an outing as a guest to check out whether Upland Plein Air is for you. Contact us and we’ll arrange it. Come make art with us!