The success of the inaugural Noordhoek Plein Air Festival earlier this year has inspired a Hout Bay edition of the enterprising arts event.
The first Hout Bay Plein Air Festival will be hosted by the Riverside Boutique Hotel on Sunday December 16.
It will see 40 invited artists, headlined by well-known Cape Town artist Andrew Cooper, paint “en plein air” at chosen locations across Hout Bay. The works they produce will then be auctioned off later in the day, with 70% of the sale price going to the artist and the remaining 30% to local charities.
Organiser Mark Woodhouse said the art world was revolutionised towards the end of the 19th Century when the idea of placing paint in a tube first came to prominence.
“For the first time this meant that artists could easily paint outside their studios at locations of their choice. En plain air is a celebration of this concept,” he said.
Mr Woodhouse said organisers would like to get as many local artists involved as possible, although the quality of the works need to be of a high standard.
“Amateur artists are invited to join the day, but they will need to send us photographs of some of their previous works for consideration. On the day of the event, registered artists will go out in the morning to various points of local interest where they will start working on their paintings. This could be Chapman’s Peak, the harbour or the forest areas, whichever location takes their fancy. They will then return in the late afternoon, where guests will have a chance to view their works with the intention of bidding on them at the auction.”
The day will not just be about art, however.
Visitors to Riverside Boutique Hotel will have the chance to enjoy a delicious buffet lunch from 11am, with musicians on hand to keep them entertained. Painting programmes for the children will also be available.
In addition, food and craft stalls will be set up on the grounds of the hotel.
In the afternoon, a special strawberries and cream high tea will be held in the run-up to the auction in the evening.
“The event is about bringing Hout Bay together during the festive season. For families, it is about enjoying an exciting new creative day in the most fantastic surroundings,” Mr Woodhouse said.
Riverside Boutique Hotel general manager Robert Veldman said the festival was the first of its kind for Hout Bay.
“It’s a wonderful opportunity to bring the whole community together,” he said.
For more information and to submit photographs of art for consideration, contact Roger Melvill at neuroartist@gmail.com
