Through the Seasons

Layer upon layer of thick oil paints slathered onto the canvas and etched into landscapes charged with energy—these are the paintings of Plein air artist Lynn Boggess. He works solely with palette knives and trowels in his wet-on-wet technique, which gives him the freedom to capture the raw energy of nature as he perceives it, as opposed to getting wrapped up in the unnecessary details.

- By Lynn Boggess

Boggess ’ are often large-scale, measuring 40, 50 and sometimes even 80 inches across, and he’ll bring these massive canvases out into the field to paint. “I’m really not trying to solve too many artistic problems while I’m out there. I’m just trying to react to what I’m seeing as quickly as I can because then you get the intuitive, the spontaneous,” says Boggess. “I’m not trying to make a painting while I’m out there, I’m trying to record experience in paint.” Once he’s captured the soul of the scene, he goes back to his studio to refine it.