Janet Arsenault
Janet resides in the Catoctin Mountains near the city of Frederick, Maryland where she is involved locally in the arts. Following her retirement from a career teaching art and special education, Janet paints with watercolor. Inspiration for her landscapes comes from painting what she observes hiking, exploring, or visiting and revisiting one familiar spot. Since July of 2019, when Janet added painting in the Keeseville Art Festival to a planned backpacking trip, she has been grateful and excited to return to a place that is so beautiful and welcoming! Janet is an active member of FPAA, a Frederick Maryland plein-air group where she volunteers to sponsor seasonal painting trips. She takes part in a local plein air event referred to as “Barn Stormers,” sponsored by the Frederick Historical Society in partnership with local farms. She combines solo outings plein air painting with her work in the studio. Janet serves on the board of the Baltimore Watercolor Society. As Signature Member of the Baltimore Watercolor Society and Pennsylvania Watercolor Society, and Associate Member of the American Watercolor Society, Janet regularly exhibits her watercolor paintings in local shows as well as in regional and national juried exhibitions. Most recently, a painting of Janet’s was selected to be included in the 2026 American Watercolor Society, Associate Member Exhibit which can currently be viewed on YouTube.
Patricia Bellerose
Currently based in Mont‑Tremblant, Québec, Patricia Bellerose also spends a great deal of time in Binghamton, NY, with her husband’s family. From an early age, her family encouraged her to draw, explore watercolors, and experiment with various painting mediums. She graduated in Graphic Design in 2000 from Ahuntsic College in Montreal. In 2006, Patricia began painting with acrylics and gradually transitioned to oil in 2008. Her first gallery representation began in 2011, and since then she has received awards in numerous international painting competitions. Her artwork has been exhibited in Canada, the United States, and China, and her paintings are collected internationally in both corporate and private collections. Patricia’s work is centered on expressing movement and bringing life to her subjects, whether she paints kitchen scenes, orchestras, still life, or landscapes. She now exhibits in multiple galleries across Canada and the United States. www.patriciabellerose.com
Lisa BurgerLentz
Lisa BurgerLentz is an outdoor painter and indoor printmaker. Formally working in the design and illustration field, Lisa has happily transitioned to the fine arts. She pursues art shows such as “Nocturnal” at MFA in Annapolis, MD and various member and juried shows both locally and nationally. Lisa competes in Plein Air events in various locations in the Middle Atlantic, Upstate New York and New England. Beyond those borders, Lisa has competed in Parrsboro, Nova Scotia and Mt. Pleasant & Knoxville TN. She hopes to continue to explore and paint in different areas, near and far. This year, she will compete in Grand Traverse in Michigan and the Floyd Biennial in Virginia Lisa was also part of a landscape group show named “Rolling Hills, Open Skies, Calm Waters” at the Cerulean Gallery in Philadelphia PA . She will have a solo show as a Collective Member of Cerulean Gallery in December 2026. Lisa was invited to show as a guest artist at the Aston Mills Artist Studios in November 2025. Lisa continues her printmaking practice as the Printshop Monitor at the Community Art Center in Wallingford, PA. She also is a Printshop Shop Assistant at the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts in Philadelphia PA. Her print collage was accepted into “Red White Blue” show at the Community Art Center for the 250th anniversary of the US. Lisa has been honored to receive many awards over the years and is a member of the American Impressionist Society.
Lisa Carlyon
Making beautiful pictures in oils became my second calling. After 40 years of cutting hair, I took a turn and dove into art. I have received an associate degree in fine art and spent three years in Atelier classically trained by Camie Salaz and Emily Dennis. Wanting to extend my knowledge of Plein Air painting I have taken workshops with Ken Salaz, Kyle Ma, and Joseph McGurl. I am very excited to come for a second appearance at the Keesville Plein air arts festival.
Jackie Clark
Jackie’s art instruction began with illustrator Frank Liljegren. A native New Yorker, Frank’s colorful stories led Jackie to move to New York City in 1984 to study at the Art Students League. Her day job introduced Jackie to the art of the Mural, and a serious dive into the conservation, restoration, and replication of historic finishes. Enabling Jackie the opportunity to travel the Country working on Cathedrals, Capitals, and Historic Theaters. Currently residing in Annapolis, Maryland, Jackie’s loose, painterly style reveals an intimacy she calls the precious presence—a meditation of seeing, using all the senses.
Eric Fasking
Eric grew up in the Adirondacks and graduated from SUNY Plattsburgh with a BA in Fine Art. He is a well traveled artist now living in south Texas. Family and friends are still in Redford, NY. He is a member of the OPA, AIS, and OPS. His works have been repeatedly accepted into their national juried shows. When painting en plein air he searches for interesting ways to suggest and capture the essence of natural beauty. Natural outdoor scenes are just starting points that journey through the mind and heart to arrive on canvas as beautiful works of art.
Mary Freida
Mary Dean Freida is an Impressionistic oil painter who has also been working in Gouache. She lives in the Finger Lakes region and has been involved in Juried competitions and Plein Air events throughout the Finger Lakes, Jamestown and the Adirondack’s. Some accomplishments noted is that Mary was named People’s Choice Award at Anthony Road Winery’s Plein Air event in 2022 and 2024. She also received an Honorable Mention at Canandaigua Plein Air Event in 2021 and People’s Choice Award at Paint Palmyra Plein Air Event in 2021. You can view her paintings at MaryFreida.com.
Tarryl Gabel
Tarryl prefers to paint with oils and plein air whenever possible, but also paints still life, wildlife and western themed paintings. She is proud to have been voted “Best Artist” in Hudson Valley Magazine’s annual “Best of the Hudson Valley” five times to date. Winning awards regionally as well as nationally, in competitions including Paint the Parks and Paint America Top 100. Tarryl’s most coveted award was titled “Worthy of the Met” from judge David C. Levy at Plein Air Easton, the largest plein air event in the Country. Her work is in many private and corporate collections nationally and abroad.
Elissa Gore
ELISSA GORE paints from observation and memory. Even when she paints en plein air, she strives to find a feeling of the universal in the natural landscape. She strives to make her paintings as beautiful as possible. In this new series of small acrylic paintings, she breaks down her memories of the landscapes she has painted over the past 35 years into individual perceptions. She then reorganizes them into expressive abstract compositions. She has exhibited her landscape paintings nationally for 35 years. They are in over 60 public/corporate collections and many private homes. For many years, Elissa was a professor of fine arts and a medical/scientific illustrator. Originally from Philadelphia, she lives in Northern Manhattan and spends summers in the Catskills. Her studio work and full resume are on her website: www.elissagore.net
She posts her travel sketches at https://elissagore.blogspot.com
Annemiek Harlson
Annemiek Haralson grew up in the Netherlands and has lived near Enfield, NY since 1992. When faced with the choice of a career path the toss-up was between nursing school and art school. Nursing won out, but she always kept drawing and painting. She took workshops and classes and has been painting consistently these past 15 years. Annemiek paints mostly landscapes and often finds inspiration while hiking. She is a member of the State of the Art Gallery in Ithaca.
Sandra Hildreth
Sandra Hildreth lives in Saranac Lake, NY and does plein air paintings of the Adirondacks and other wild places. She has a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree plus K-12 Art Education certification and taught high school art in northern NY for 31 years. Her paintings are all specific locations and might be described as explorations of the Adirondacks with a paint brush. Her paintings can be found in the Adirondack Experience, national and regional juried shows and galleries as well as SandraHildreth.com. Visitors are welcome at her home studio by chance or appointment.
Cynthia Jennings
Although she’s from Bethesda MD and the Washington DC area, Cynthia has always spent Summers in the Adirondacks. She holds a BFA from Moore College of Art in Philadelphia, PA and is a Signature Member of both the Baltimore Watercolor Society and the Maryland Pastel Society and is a juried member of the prestigious Countryside Artisans of Maryland. Before concentrating on Fine Art, she was a Public and Residential Mural Artist. Cynthia’s style is dreamy and impressionistic. Themes she enjoys are Agricultural and Adirondack landscapes and wildlife. She paints with a sensitive appreciation of beauty and hope for preservation.
Jim Laurino
Jim studied painting, design, and color theory at the University of Connecticut. Through additional workshops and self-study, Jim has cultivated a bold representational painting style that balances the impressionists influence with contemporary subject matter. Jim’s paintings are in numerous private collections throughout the US and overseas. He shows his work in venues across the Northeast, and enjoys participating in competitive painting events.
Recent events/awards:
2026 – First Place Award – Lyme Art Association Marine show, Old Lyme, CT
2025 – Artists Choice Award – Plein Air Litchfield, Litchfield, CT
2025 – First Place Award – Keeseville Plein air, Keeseville, NY
2024 – First Place Award – Adirondacks Plein Air Competition, Saranac, NY
For Additional background on Jim please visit: www.jimlaurino.com,
Social Media: Facebook – Jim Laurino
Tami Louco
Tami Louco is an oil painter who describes her work as representational, impressionistic and expressive. Tami was introduced to plein air painting in high school, painting garages in an alley behind her art teacher’s house in western Pennsylvania. She continued her study and practice of art and literature at Geneva College and graduated from the University of Pittsburgh, majoring in both Studio Art and English Literature. After working in many different fields, Tami transitioned from mural/faux finish painting to making “fine art”. Tami has participated in regional and national plein air events, interpreting a variety of American landscapes.
Alison Lusardi
Alison Lusardi is a Hudson Valley Artist, who works primarily in oils. Her work is inspired by the natural beauty of the Hudson River, and the Hudson Highlands. She loves to paint Plein Air, and can often be seen painting at the banks of the Hudson River. She is an active member of several arts organizations, including the American Artists Professional League, Ridgewood Art Institute, Garrison Art Center, Cornwall-Highlands Arts Alliance, Ringwood Manor Association of the Arts, Wallkill River Center for the Arts, and Roost Arts Hudson Valley. Alison has participated in numerous Plein Air festivals, Including the Hudson Valley Plein Air, River Towns Plein Air, Long Beach Island Plein Air Plus, Susquehanna Summer Solstice Plein Air, Keeseville Plein Air, and the Shattemuc PleinAir festival. Alison’s artwork has been featured in several prominent exhibitions at the Garrison Art Center, including 59 Views of the Hudson, The Next 60, Art Now in the Hudson Valley A Celebration of Shared Space, and most recently, Hidden in Plain View. She’s exhibited and won awards for her paintings, and has been juried into many exhibits including, the Wallkill River Center for the Arts portrait exhibit, for her painting, Big Blues, the American Artist Professional League, for her painting, Moody Bouquet, and Hudson Views from West Point, and the Adirondack Artist Guild in Saranac Lake for her painting, By the Bay. She has exhibited at the Howland Cultural Center in Beacon, the Garrison Art Center, Putnam Arts Council, Wallkill River Center for the Arts, Ridgewood Art Institute, Arbor Gallery and Ringwood Manor Association of the Arts.
Contact:
Phone: (914) 552-9032
Email: alisonlusardi@yahoo.com
Website: http://www.alisonlusardifineart.com
Instagram: @alisonlusardifineart
John McNally
John McNally has been painting for thirty years. A Pennsylvanian by birth, he received an MFA from Louisiana State. He managed a poetry bookstore for a decade in San Francisco before moving to NJ in ’96 — where he studied intensively with artist Robert Beck along the Delaware River — focusing on both landscape and figure drawing. Working in oil and pastel, he has won notable awards: Two 1st Place awards at Morristown NY, a 2nd Place at Saranac’s Adirondack Festival, and 2nd Place at Billsboro in Geneva NY. Inspired by cloud-filled skies and vast views, Keeseville remains one of his favorite painting destinations.
Patrick McPhee
Patrick McPhee seamlessly blends his love of the outdoors and fishing with his passion for painting. Much of his childhood was spent exploring the natural world through family camping trips, fishing excursions, and hikes. These experiences would later shape his artistic vision and continue to influence his work today. After studying at the Art Institute of Pittsburgh, Patrick developed a deep appreciation for the painters of the Hudson River School, whose reverence for nature and landscape left a lasting impression on him. Inspired by their ideals, he strives to capture the beauty and spirit of the natural world in his own paintings. Today, Patrick continues to refine his craft while sharing his passion for art and nature with others. Through his work, he often reimagines landscapes as they once were, removing modern intrusions such as buildings, parking lots, and power lines to reveal a more pristine and timeless scene. His paintings can be found in private collections around the world.
Chrissy Pahucki
Chrissy Pahucki is a painter from Goshen, NY. While teaching art, Chrissy has also been painting at plein air festivals since 2011. She often has her children or former students painting alongside her. She participates in high profile competitions from Maine to Montana including Plein Air Easton, Plein Air Montana, Driggs Plein Air Festival, Adirondack Plein Air and others. Her paintings have won numerous awards and honors and have been featured on the cover of Canvas Magazine twice. Chrissy has a MA in Art Education and is pursuing an MFA in Painting from the Savannah College of Art and Design.
Maria Payer
A signature member of the Baltimore Watercolor Society, the New Jersey Watercolor Society and the Philadelphia Watercolor Society, Maria Payer is devoted to the aqueous medium of watercolor. Since 2018 Payer’s work has been juried into exhibits mounted throughout the mid-Atlantic region, from New York City’s Salmagundi to Pottstown Pennsylvania’s Hill School. Most recently, Payer’s “Birthday Girl” received the Nead Memorial Award in the 2024 New Jersey Watercolor Society’s 82nd Open Juried Exhibition. Her 2025 watercolor “Kayaks on the Cohansey” was awarded First Place at the Cumberland County Cultural and Historical Commission-sponsored “Cumberland on Canvas” exhibition. Payer’s painting subsequently found a permanent home in the County Commission’s public art collection.
Focused on the fluid aspects of watercolor, Maria Payer continues to explore its possibilities in her studio, through plein air projects and workshop participation. Payer’s watercolors are in private collections throughout the US, Europe and South America.
Deborah Richardson
Deborah Lovelace Richardson received a BFA in painting from the Maryland Institute College of Art in Baltimore. She had the good fortune to be able to study with many well-known artists, all of whom greatly influenced her love of landscape painting. She has always preferred painting outdoors in a small format that can be completed in one, or two, three hour sessions. Her technique involves applying oil paint by carefully analyzing how each color relates to the next. By placing each stroke as accurately as possible the first time, she minimizes the need for corrections. This approach creates a rich, painterly surface that emphasizes the texture of the brushstroke and the application of the paint. Richardson paints weekly with Frederick Maryland’s enthusiastic plein air community and participates in several local plein air events each year. She has received numerous awards over the years and was honored to have her work featured in the Maryland Public Television special, “Historic Barns of Maryland”. Deborah is a founding member of the Frederick Plein Air Artists, and a life member of the Delaplaine Visual Arts Center and the Frederick County Art Association.
Deborah’s art work can be viewed by appointment at her home studio/gallery in New Market, Maryland that she shares with her artist husband Harry Lamar Richardson. Her work may also be viewed at Gallery 322 in downtown Frederick.
Contact Information:
e-mail deblovelacerichardson@gmail.com or www.deborahlovelaceart.com
Will Rothfuss
Will Rothfuss lives at the foot of the Pocono Mountains (PA) near the Delaware Water Gap where the natural beauty of the Gap presents stunning plein air vistas. Will studied art at Cornell and the Art Student’s League in NYC and has been an artist for over 50 years, primarily working out of his studio. He has been busy with the Texas Church Project since 2000, which can be seen at his website: willrothfuss.com. He loves the freedom and camaraderie of plein air where his work won the Best in Show and Excellence in Painting awards at the 2025 Susquehanna Plein Air.
Kari Ruiz
Kari Ganoung Ruiz was raised at the edge of The Finger Lakes National Forest in NY, setting the stage for her deep connection to the natural landscape.
After receiving a BS in Fine Art from Ashland University in Ohio, She worked as a faux finisher, muralist, and owned a picture framing studio and gallery with her husband Diego. Kari became a full time painter in 2014, focusing on working in oil outside from life.Recent awards include: Best In Show – Adirondack Plein Air in NY 2025, Grand Prize – Lighthouse Plein Air in FL 2024, Best In Show – Teche Plein Air in LA 2023. Kari’s work is held in collections across the US, including the BLM in Colorado and The City of Gloucester, Massachusetts.
Jerry Russell
I live where I was born and raised, in Central New York, about 10 minutes from where I grew up, and just a short drive to the Adirondack Mountains. Since 1987, I’ve been happily married to my best friend, Becky. We have one son, a remarkable individual who has dedicated his professional life to helping those in need, and a goofy, lovable, bulldozer of a rescue dog named Princess Zelda. I studied architecture and painting at a local community college before transferring to Syracuse University, where I graduated in 1983 from the Visual Arts department with a BFA in Illustration and a painting minor. Painting in the wild, Buck Pond, Vermontville, NY. The next several years included working full-time in retail shoe sales while establishing artist roots by freelancing for agencies and small to mid-size businesses. This eventually led to a staff job at a small newspaper as Art Director and illustrator — and then as a graphic artist, and eventually Art Director at a mid-sized ad agency. Also included in there — before starting my own business, Studio309, and during its first years — I worked at an animation house doing storyboarding and 2D/3D animations, and spent five years as an adjunct professor of Design and Desktop Publishing at the same community college where I started my art education.Over my 35 years of self-employment, I did everything from logo design to package design; fantasy book cover art to digital 3D medical modeling; and all the while, I was engaged in drawing and painting — for client projects and commissions, but also for myself. I have been active in local art groups and guilds, and shown my work in juried local and regional exhibitions.My earlier paintings were tighter, done in acrylic or watercolor. Painting “en plein air” in oil is a fairly recent adventure in my pursuit of a more immediate, responsive painting style. This direct method of painting outside from life, favored by the Impressionists, has an energy that I’ve always been drawn to.
Web: jerryrussellart.com, Facebook: jerryrussellart
Mitchell Saler
Mitchell Saler is a fine artist who primarily paints realistic landscapes in oil. In his works, he enjoys conveying vastness, dramatic lighting, and atmospheric effects. He exhibits his art in a number of venues and participates in plein air painting events. He has received awards in various art exhibits including from the Salmagundi Club. He lives in Middletown, NY, and is a member of several art organizations in the Hudson Valley. He received a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Painting and Drawing, summa cum laude, from SUNY New Paltz. His website is mitchellsaler.com and he is on Instagram @mitchellsaler
George Van Hook
George Van Hook was born and raised in Abington, Pennsylvania, a northern suburb of Philadelphia. He began painting very early and was able to participate in the vibrant artistic culture of the region. The family owned a farm in Bucks County, home of the Pennsylvania impressionists, and he became heavily influenced by their fine academic training coupled with a love of the prosaic landscape. Another early local influence was the “Brandywine Tradition”, the illustrative work of Howard Pyle and the generations of Wyeths. This was further enhanced by a close association with coastal Maine. George has spent many summers painting in the mid-coast area of Rockland and Rockport Harbor, and on North Haven Island where his wife’s family owned property adjacent to the famous Boston artist Frank Benson.
Dennon Walantus
Dennon is a local artist with a studio in Schuyler Falls, NY. Graduate of Beekmantown High School, then SUNY Plattsburgh. He found his love for oil painting and Plein air painting during his study in college and now explores the beauty of the region around him while capturing the moment through paint. Plein air painting is important to his work because it gives a sense of intimacy and immediacy he loves to convey.
Dennon has been an award winning artist in past festivals and exhibits work with various galleries in the region.
Susan Whiteman
Susan Whiteman is a lifelong artist and has been on the plein air “circuit” for the last fifteen years. She describes her paintings as traditional landscapes, and is currently working primarily in oil and watercolor. She took Second Place in the Keeseville Community Arts Festival in 2024, People’s Choice Award at Tupper Arts Plein Air Festival in 2023 and won First Place in the Adirondack Artists Guild’s 2019 annual show. She has been featured in solo shows across New York State, and has been accepted into innumerable competitive shows and painting events. Though her degree is in health care, her education includes interior design and decades of classes and workshops with master painters.
She’s taught classes in painting at View in Old Forge at The Wild Center in Tupper Lake, and in NJ. She is a member of and president of NorthWind Fine Arts Gallery in Saranac Lake and has sat on various art-associated boards and is a juried member of the Pastel Society of America.
Nancy Woogen
Nancy Woogen is a retired public school art teacher and now a full time artist. She continues to teach art to both seniors and children in her community. Nancy is a member of the Lower Hudson Plein air group and frequently paints at multiple locations in the majestic Hudson Valley. In addition, Nancy has had some opportunities to paint in Maine and the Adirondacks as well as painting abroad in Italy, Scotland, Iceland and Ireland. Traveling with her husband and their camper, Nancy has multiple opportunities to paint in National parks from coast to coast including Alaska and British Columbia. Nancy’s art mediums include oil, acrylic, pastel, watercolor, charcoal and pen and ink. In her love for the outdoors, Nancy enjoys gardening and does many botanical watercolors from various plants that grow in her garden.In the winters Nancy stays in her studio and often paints larger works from her plein air paintings done from her travels. Please visit her website at woogen-art.com.