Plein Air Landscape Painting

Combine your love of artmaking and nature through the practice of open-air painting at the Haverford College Arboretum. Featuring meadows, gardens, and wooded areas, including the college’s impressive historic tree collection in autumnal colors, this scenic location is the perfect, peaceful place to learn the essentials of landscape painting. Veteran plein air artist Joe Sweeney will guide newcomers and artists of all levels through both the artistic concerns and practical matters of open-air painting. Topics include the basics of working outdoors as well as the aesthetic how-tos of color mixing to achieve a sense of light and air, capturing time of day, composition fundamentals, and sound drawing and painting practices. Instruction is geared toward oil/acrylic painting and pastel drawing/painting. Restrooms and parking are available. Note: PAFA students are responsible for their own transportation to painting locations.

*Please reserve a rain date of October 23, should any session be postponed due to inclement weather.

This class will cost $375 for the six-week session. For more information, the materials list, and to register, visit PAFA’s Class Catalogue.

Joseph Sweeney’s Biography

Born in Philadelphia, Joseph Sweeney graduated with a Bachelors of Fine Arts in Painting and Drawing from the Philadelphia College of Art (now the University of the Arts) in 1976. He studied with and was influenced by: Isa Barnett, Sandy Ceaser, David Kettner, Boris Putterman, Gerry Herdman, Jack Andrews, Ray Spiller, Morris Schulman, Warren Rorher, David Fertig, Jane Piper, Sidney Goodman, and Lily Yeh.He received a Master’s Degree in Printmaking from the Art and Architecture department of Penn State University in 1980. While there studied with Bruce Shobaken, Diane Pepe and Peter Jogo.

A resident of Ardmore, Pennsylvania, he has taught or is teaching at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts, The University of the Arts, Wayne Art Center, Woodmere Art Museum, and Chester Springs Studio. Primarily a landscape painter he was awarded Best of Show at “Images ’98” Central Pennsylvania Festival of the Arts July 1998 and Best of Show for The Philadelphia Water Color Club 98th Anniversary International Exhibition of Works on Paper.In 2002 was awarded Fellowship of the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts. Catherine Gibbons Granger Award for Landscape, Chester Springs, PA. Also in 2002 he was awarded Best in Show by The Philadelphia Sketch Club Works on Paper. And in 2010 took second place for the same show. In 2006 took part in ART in Embassies Program. U.S. Dept. of State, (Catalog) Washington D.C. In the Embassies of Port-of Spain, Trinidad & Kigali, Rwanda.

In 2013 he was awarded a three month residency at The Master Works Museum in Paget, Bermuda. 2017 Residency at the Studios of Key West, FL. 2018 Residency At the Rose Cottage, Vinalhaven, Maine. Recently awarded the Brandywine Conservancy Award. 2019 Joseph Sweeney is currently represented by: Gallery 222 in Malvern and Cerulean Gallery in Philadelphia. Many public and private institutions, private collections, and museums own his works. For more information please visit his website: https://www.joesweeneyart.com/