The ability for artists to paint outside, directly from nature, transformed the practice of landscape painting. Beginning in the 1830's, painter began to move from the studio out-of-doors and their paintings increasingly captured the ever-shifting effects of time of day, season, and atmosphere. Come explore this fascinating history with William Perthes and enjoy its ongoing impact in the Wayne Art Center's 16th Annual Plein Air Festival

 

William M. Perthes is the Bernard C. Watson Director of Adult Education at the Barnes Foundation. He is an art historian whose scholarship focuses on Modernism, particularly in the United States, with a special concentration on the Abstract Expressionist painter Robert Motherwell. Bill Perthes has a background in philosophy, specifically John Dewey and American pragmatism. His recent work has focused on how experiences with works of art, both short and long term, can impact and inform fields as varied as business, medicine, and criminal justice.