I mentioned in a previous post that I really like water soluble oils.  They have many of the same characteristics as regular oils. They dry slowly so you can blend the colors on the canvas. They have that nice sheen to them.  The main advantage they have over regular oils is that you don’t need harsh solutions like turpentine.  Today I learned they have a disadvantage that I hadn’t thought of.

Falls Church Arts has a plein aire show every year.  Entries must be painted outside on location and the scenes must come from inside the Falls Church City lines.  This presents me with several challenges.  First, I’m not a very practiced plein aire painter — I usually paint from photos.  Plein Aire is something I need to get better at because it will sharpen my skills in many ways.  Second, I’m mostly a landscape painter and Falls Church is pretty urban.

Last year I painted a scene from the front yard of a friend’s house.  It was a lovely scene.  The azaleas were in bloom. The painting wasn’t bad, but it wasn’t everything I wanted it to be, so I didn’t enter it.

Today I decided to sit out in the plaza in front of Mad Fox Brewing Company and paint the awnings, windows, and tables out front.  It is a lovely day with a mix of clouds and sun. I was a little intimidated by the people at first but most people didn’t pay much attention. Those who did were polite.  Kids were fascinated.   I relaxed and painted and the painting, which was challenging, started to slowly come together. Then it started to rain.  A disadvantage of water soluble oils is that they run in the rain (only when they are wet – once dry they are as permanent as regular oils). The painting can probably be repaired, but it’s going to take some time. I was going to post a picture, but it’s just too sad.   All is good though – I got to to spend the afternoon painting.