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Artist's Classes Promise To Be A Breath Of Fresh Air

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The Tampa Tribune

Published: January 30, 2008

TAMPA - Award-winning artist Terry Klaaren is an acrylic painter. So are a lot of people.

But what makes Klaaren a standout in his field is that he stands out in the field to paint. It's called painting en plein air.

"People really treat you nice when you're outside painting," he said. "I like doing something quickly and efficiently and without too much tedium and getting a finished product quickly."

Within a couple of hours, Klaaren has what he calls a painted sketch to take back to the studio to finish.

Starting Saturday, he will conduct plein air workshops at parks in northeast Hillsborough County.
Outdoor painting presents challenges: the sun moves; the breeze blows; and the weather changes.

"This is why people don't do it," Klaaren said.

"The point of my class is to give a person the step-by-step process that will get them over the obstacles that hinder painting outdoors," he said. "I've painted a few hundred of these things and I've sort of come up with a process by now."

A Tampa resident for 35 years, Klaaren may be best known locally for his murals, including at businesses and many schools, most recently at Sam Rampello Downtown Partnership School. His next project is creating a mural on an exterior wall at Seminole Heights Elementary.

"I love doing murals. There's great variety, and usually I'm working with pretty creative people, and they have a lot of good ideas," he said. "And the children are a great audience. They watch me paint, and I tell them about what I'm doing, and the next thing you know I'm playing teacher."

The plein air workshops give him a chance to tap into his other love.

"When I paint it on site, I'm there for a couple of hours, and I pick the view apart bit by bit," Klaaren said. "I know that place so much better. And even back in the studio, when I'm putting finishing touches on the painting, I can feel the setting like I was still there and sense the time of day and the color. The memory of the day is back in force."

The workshops are open to amateur and serious painters alike, and Klaaren plans to have each session focus on a different aspect.

The workshops will be Saturday and April 12 at Trout Creek Park; March 1 at Morris Bridge Park; and March 29 at Flatwoods Park. A location will be announced for the May 10 workshop.

Each workshop is from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. and costs $30.

Contact Klaaren at (813) 985-9200 or info@klaaren art.com.

Artist Sets Workshop Before Moving North

This may be your last chance to take a felting class with local fabric artist Leslie Owens, who's moving to Asheville, N.C., in March.

She's offering a two-day Introduction to Wet Felt Workshop from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday and Sunday at her Florida Felt Studio, 3200 W. Paul Ave., in Ballast Point.

The cost is $40 a day, plus $18 for materials. For details, go to www.floridafelt.com or call (813) 489-6304.

Correspondent Esther Hammer can be reached at (813) 835-2108 or ehammer@tampatrib.com.

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