The awards for the March 2025 PleinAir Salon Art Competition were announced on April 10th. The selections were made by judge, Lori Putnam. The overall and category winners will now be included in the judging for the 14th Annual PleinAir Salon Competition being awarded in May 2025.
FIRST PLACE
Deborah Tilby (Canada), Into the Distance
Oil, 30×23 in.
“One word… ENERGY! There is an unexplainable stirring that happens when a painting has this kind of movement. I compare this to the same sort of excitement I get when I watch an orchestra conductor with baton moving, hitting the downbeat, then moving again while the other hand is begging for more before gently pushing back. It is all but impossible to ignore… float, hit, release, attack, the crescendo, and dramatic finale. This artist takes us through a journey here. Compositionally, there is a strong “X” design using diagonal lines. The masses are brilliantly organized by value and contrast. The piece is masterfully painted using a variety of mark-making and brushwork.”
SECOND PLACE
Robert Obermiller, South Shore YC
Oil, 10×30 in.
“There are several presumed rules that the artist has ignored here, and this piece would not work otherwise. The amount of the sky and the water are equal, resulting in a darker, horizontal line in the center that stretches across an extreme horizontal canvas proportion. Raising or lowering the horizon line would change this work, but not in a good way. The heavy-weighted dark pattern of boats with their masses extended into the air provides the perfect weight to the lower half of the painting, indicating that the horizon is actually higher than it is, and giving us a sense of calm, peacefulness, and safety. That perceived peacefullness is echoed in the simplicity of the sky and setting sun. Restraint is the artist’s strength here, proving that subject is secondary to a clear statement. Sensitive use of neutral colors increases the perseption of a chroma where it is most needed, in the sky.”
THIRD PLACE
Joaquin Morales Molero (Conte & Graphite), Henry and His Cane
Conte & Graphite, 85×68 in.
“The incredible craft is immediately evident in this work. It is what you see first and want to examine for a very long time. I truly wish I could do that in person. But judging a competition online provides a different and important advantage, and that is the ability to “stand back” more easily, and take in the piece as a whole. The strength of this design is revealed when the work is reduced to a thumbnail where we observe the figure only in terms of a light/dark pattern. There is intellegent diminution that suddenly appears. No two light shapes are the same in size or importance. The largest, the face, neck, and shirt collar, expands slightly into the light background by use of soft edges at the back of the ear and neck. Notice how the different angle and placement of his two hands create the feeling that one commands our attention and the other takes on a supporting role. Finally, dark toning on each button slowly increases resulting in each light shape becoming smaller and smaller. This compositional approach is also observed when comparing each of the dark shapes to each other.”
CATEGORY WINNERS
Each category award winner is now entered into the Annual Competition. Judges will review all the winners from the 14th Annual PleinAir Salon, and we will award over $25,000 at the Annual Competition held in May 2025.
CATEGORY HONORABLE MENTIONS
The category honorable mention recipients are eligible to re-enter their paintings into future competitions.
TOP 100 FINALISTS
Each month all the entries are reviewed and scored by a judge. The paintings with the highest scores become the Top 100 Finalists. (In the event of tied scores, there may be more than 100). The awards for the monthly competition are selected from this group of finalist.
Click here to view all the entrants to the March PleinAir Salon Art Competition.
