JUNE 12-17, 2023
Berks County, Pennsylvania
Plein Air West Reading 2023 will showcase four days of original plein air artwork by 30 juried artists. Now in its eighth year, the competition will likely draw artists from half a dozen states to capture the character and beauty of Berks County on canvas and compete for $4000+ in awards:
First Place, Best Berks County: $1000
First Place, Best West Reading: $1000
Second Place: $700
Third Place: $400
Honorable Mentions (2): $200
People Choice Award: $100
Plus theme-specific awards TBA 5/1/23
The awards will be presented Friday, 6/17 at an invitation-only Patrons Preview. On Saturday, the exhibit will be rehung as the keystone exhibit of Art on the Avenue, the area’s most popular art & craft street festival.
From an artist’s perspective, Berks County is uniquely multi-faceted. You can find some of practically anything here: bustling urban areas, rolling Amish farmlands. Waterways, forests, parks and valleys of inspiring natural splendor. Beautifully preserved historical structures, vestiges of a national industrial powerhouse. As a resource for visiting artists, Art Plus Gallery has compiled a Google Map-based guide to many places favored by local artists.
Artists can use the links below to download and submit jpgs of three recent works for juror Nancy Tankersley to consider. The deadline for submissions is March 1, and the field of artists will be announced by March 15.
Berks County, Pennsylvania
Plein Air West Reading 2023 will showcase four days of original plein air artwork by 30 juried artists. Now in its eighth year, the competition will likely draw artists from half a dozen states to capture the character and beauty of Berks County on canvas and compete for $4000+ in awards:
First Place, Best Berks County: $1000
First Place, Best West Reading: $1000
Second Place: $700
Third Place: $400
Honorable Mentions (2): $200
People Choice Award: $100
Plus theme-specific awards TBA 5/1/23
The awards will be presented Friday, 6/17 at an invitation-only Patrons Preview. On Saturday, the exhibit will be rehung as the keystone exhibit of Art on the Avenue, the area’s most popular art & craft street festival.
From an artist’s perspective, Berks County is uniquely multi-faceted. You can find some of practically anything here: bustling urban areas, rolling Amish farmlands. Waterways, forests, parks and valleys of inspiring natural splendor. Beautifully preserved historical structures, vestiges of a national industrial powerhouse. As a resource for visiting artists, Art Plus Gallery has compiled a Google Map-based guide to many places favored by local artists.
Artists can use the links below to download and submit jpgs of three recent works for juror Nancy Tankersley to consider. The deadline for submissions is March 1, and the field of artists will be announced by March 15.
Be a big part of the picture even if you AREN'T a plein air artist
Brushes aside, there are four other ways that you can be part of the region’s most exciting art competition and exhibition:
Brushes aside, there are four other ways that you can be part of the region’s most exciting art competition and exhibition:
- Sponsor your own themed award: Five individuals, businesses or organizations will have the opportunity to theme their own $500 award. It could be the best painting of a specific area, historical site or subject. It could be a medium in memory of an artist friend, e.g. “The Jane Smith Award for Best Watercolor.” Your name can appear in the title or description of the award. (Button below)
- Check out all the levels of support: From vaunted prime sponsorships to friendly support, there's a great place for everyone in Plein Air West Reading.
- Host a visiting artist: This annual event typically draws artists from half a dozen other states. Hosting a visiting artist for June 12-17, or any part thereof, can be a rewarding experience for everyone. Traditionally these accomplished artists, some of whom are nationally recognized, are very self-sufficient, needing little more than a roof, bed and a little refrigerator space. It is also customary for most to thank their hosts with the gift of a painting!
- Volunteer: We can usually use more hands for check-in, intake, the Patrons Preview and Art on the Avenue.
- Attend the 6/16 Patrons Preview & Awards Presentation: Guests at this 2-hour event enjoy the first look at the week's creative achievements, as well as the chance to meet the artists. It's invitation-only: if you're a sponsor, supporter of the event or Art Plus Gallery, or a serious collector, talk with Art Plus about getting on the guest list.
EVENT JUROR: NANCY TANKERSLEY
Nancy Tankersley began her career as a portraitist but entered the gallery scene with figurative paintings of people at work and at leisure. The working watermen of the Chesapeake Bay provide a perfect of blend of humans at work in a gorgeous landscape, and have provided the artist with rich subject matter for the past decade. Incorporating non-traditional tools, supports and technologies for her paintings she remains faithful to her impressionistic style. Active in the current plein air movement, and a founder of Plein Air Easton, she travels worldwide participating in competitions, judging and teaching. Most recently, she was the Featured Artist at the 49th Annual Waterfowl Exhibit and Festival. In 2016 and 2017 she was invited to exhibit at the prestigious Masters Exhibition at the Salmagundi Club in NYC. As a Signature Member of the American Society of Marine Artists, this year her work was included in the first international online exhibit of Marine Artists. Recent awards include Best Painting by a Maryland Artist at Plein Air Easton 2021, Award for Excellence at the American Impressionist Society Annual Exhibit in 2018, Best of Show at the Lighthouse Plein Air Festival 2017 and the Dickinson Award for Best Painting by a Signature Member of the American Impressionist Society 2016 and 2022 Annual National Juried Exhibitions.
