For art materials, much depends on your medium of choice and painting style. I do not recommend that you buy a specific set of materials, but rather work with the materials with which you are familiar. I’d also recommend a sketch book of course, charcoal, graphite pencils and kneadable eraser. Painters often find it’s a lot less intimidating to get started with a quick sketch, which is an excellent practice regardless.
Include something firm to support your work, keeping in mind that we will be outside without studio equipment. I use a smaller format, normally 15″x11″ maximum, often smaller with watercolour. Plein Air painting is all about sensing the atmosphere – if, like me, you tend to include the proverbial kitchen sink, I recommend that you keep your kit simple and suggest you split your kit into “Outside” and “inside” parts. Should you be using stretched canvas, it’s a good idea to have an opaque backing board – a back lit canvas is very hard to work with!
Here are a few other things to consider bringing:
- Something to sit on, such as a small cushion or a fold-up stool or chair. There will sometimes be a convenient picnic table or wall;
- Sunscreen, a sunhat and sunglasses, a clamp-able umbrella is not a bad idea too;
- Something windproof and layers in case it cools;
- Something to drink and keep hydrated
- For watercolours and acrylics, water and a container for painting
- A bag to put rubbish in, such as dirty pieces of paper towel;
- A large plastic bag as an emergency rain shield;
- A camera for recording the scene.