Plein Air Convention Draws Over a Thousand Artists

Over 1,000 artists gathered for five days of plein air inspiration, instruction, and immersive painting experiences during last week’s Plein Air Convention & Expo (PACE), the world’s largest annual gathering of outdoor painters.

Hosted by PleinAir™ Magazine Publisher Eric Rhoads, their pochades (outdoor easels) tripods popped up all over the breathtaking landscape of Lake Tahoe and Reno, Nevada. Between indoor and outdoor painting sessions and group outings to ideal spots on the shoreline and unspoiled natural terrain, they soaked up instruction from leading painters in the field and connected face-to-face with peers at every level from throughout the global plein air community.

PACE 2025 featured a stellar lineup of internationally renowned teaching artists, including Scott Christensen, Bill Davidson, Joseph Zbukvic, Cindy Baron, Joseph McGurl, Kathie Odom, Kathleen Hudson, Harley Brown, Kathleen Dunphy, and Mike Hernandez. Attendees directly from them and 70+ other faculty artists through live demonstrations, hands-on workshops, and of course painting sessions in the stunning outdoor settings.

Al Kline led a demonstration for a group of painters in front of the St. Mary’s Art Center, which was originally the town’s hospital.

Bill Davidson, brushslinger.

Bill Davidson led into his “Sky High Magic” session by humbly sharing “how bad I really was [in the beginning] and what happened to me along the way so that you’ll feel comfortable with making a complete fool of yourself like I do.” He added that painting is “a tremendous joy, and you need to be able to laugh at yourself.”

Joseph Zbukvic demos his watercolor plein air techniques on the main stage indoors.

“Watercolor is the gentlest of mediums,” Joseph Zbukvic said during his demonstration. For him it’s all about the middle ground. The foreground takes us into the picture, he said, the background can be a loose indication of a building, for example, and the middle ground is there to take your eye into the painting. “Its job is to be interesting and well done,” he added.

During the off-site outings, or “paint-outs,” several buses of artists wound their way up through the mountains surrounding Reno to Virginia City, a mining town established in 1859.

Because the city was so happy to host the artists who wanted to paint their town and views, they offered official city docents to ride along on our tour buses to share the history of the area on our way to and from the painting sites.

The “100-mile view” from Virginia City, Nevada

Goeff Allen painting the street scene of old town Virginia City

From Joseph McGurl’s morning demo (left: detail)

Instead of painting on location at this adventure, Mark Shasha stopped to help out others along the boardwalk in front of the variety shops.

Some painters took their easels inside to the Bucket of Blood Saloon to paint an interior scene. Virginia City is just about 35 minutes from Reno, and well worth the beautiful drive to get there.

Kyle Ma was part of a small group of painters that had two actors as models at an outdoor reenactment theater.

Scott Christensen demos clouds. Scot said he likes to focus when he paints, so he explained his process before and after.

Eric Rhoads and friends ~ many of us wore our cowboy hats and bandanas to add to the fun!

Shared Michelle Held on Instagram: “I spent the week supporting other artists as they created their beautiful pieces, which was absolutely priceless. I was blessed with a quiet moment to paint this scene. Y’all, those vibrant turquoise waters and snow-capped peaks were impossible to resist. I feel so deeply grateful for this time, this place, and the inspiring community I shared it with. What a gift.”

Paint Out at the Stampede in Tahoe National Forest

The look of MASTERY! Lakeside in the Lake Tahoe National Forest.

On location in Tahoe National Forest.

It wasn’t all discipline and getting your values right. This year’s End of Week Dance Party had a1920s theme that was embraced with open arms! What will it be next time? Wait and see!

For more photos and video clips from the week, follow our Instagram!

Eric and friends during the paint-out in historic Virginia City, Nevada.

It was a hugely successful event, made possible by a 50+ member team working the year prior, led by the intrepid Eric Rhoads. Next year’s PACE is going to be held in the Ozark Mountains May 14-28, 2026. Get the early bird scoop and check it our here.