5-Day Plein Air Paint Festival
Paint the rolling farmlands, dramatic river banks, charming downtown areas, prairies, and forests of Buffalo, Chippewa, Dunn, Pepin, and Eau Claire Counties of western Wisconsin.
GO Paint! Chippewa Valley
11th Year of GO Paint! May 6 - 12 | Registration Now Open
This May, paint the days and nights away in the beautiful Chippewa Valley when we welcome the greens of spring and the leaves are first appearing. Find a hidden valley, river cove, sidewalk café, or rustic barn: there are so many opportunities for a beautiful painting experience in our region.
Spring 2023 Exhibition Opens May. 12
Reflected Light: The Art of GO Paint! | Brady & Jeanne Foust Gallery - Pablo Center
The 2023 Spring GO Paint! Chippewa Valley exhibition opens for viewing in-person and virtually on May 12, 2023 and is on display through August 6, 2023. Pablo Center galleries are open Monday - Friday from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. plus 2 hours before events.
Artist Reception & Award Ceremony | May 12 from 5-8 p.m.
Grab a drink at our lobby bar and join us for an evening of artfull conversations with the artists of GO Paint! Chippewa Valley This event is free, however you must reserve a ticket to attend.
Explore our previous GO Paint! Exhibits.
ARTIST INFORMATION
Artists are required to register to participate. Exhibiting artists will be allowed to submit up to 5 works of art that have been created outdoors, within a 10-mile radius of the Eau Claire & Chippewa Rivers Between Augusta, Cornell, Chippewa Falls, Eau Claire, Durand, & Nelson, Wisconsin.
All artworks will be exhibited in-person and virtually on our website. All artwork presented for the exhibition must be for sale. All sales, including purchase awards, will incur a commission.
Download the information brochure below.
Register for Spring 2023 GO Paint Now Open
- Spring GO Paint! Registration - $30
GO Paint! Chippewa Valley Awards
Adult Quick Paint Awards
- Best of Show: Cash Award - $200
- First Place: Cash Award - $100
- Second Place: Cash Award - $75
- Third Place: Cash Award - $50
Exhibit Awards
- Best of Show - $500
- First Place - $250
- Second Place - $150
- Third Place - $100
- Best River - $200
Best of Pablo Center at the Confluence
- Cash Award - $200 This award will be selected by Pablo Center Staff
Participation Award
- Cash Award - $50 Every time you paint at one of our social paint events, we will put your name in a drawing for this cash award.
OPEN PAINTING
Paint the days and nights away in the beautiful Chippewa Valley when we welcome the greens of spring and the leaves are first appearing. This May, find a hidden valley, river cove, sidewalk cafeĢ, or rustic barn: there are so many opportunities for a beautiful painting experience in our region.
Saturday, May 6
11 a.m. - 12 p.m. YOUTH QUICK PAINT
FREE for young painters aged 18 and under. Registration is on-site in front of Pablo Center. Young painters will have one hour to paint the flora, fauna, and folks of Haymarket Plaza and Phoenix Park. Prizes will be awarded. Participants are welcome to bring their own paint supplies or use ours for free! Art instructors will be present to assist with supplies.This event is presented by Pablo Center’s ARTmobile and sponsored by the Janet Carson Art Education Fund.
2 - 4 p.m. ADULT QUICK PAINT
Registered GO Paint! Chippewa Valley painters will have two hours to paint the flora, fauna, and folks of Haymarket Plaza, Phoenix Park, and the surrounding confluence of the Eau Claire and Chippewa Rivers. Cash prizes awarded.If painting for prizes, please line up your canvas on your easel or set it on a provided table outside of Pablo Center facing the Haymarket Plaza by 4:15 p.m. Framed or unframed pieces are accepted.
Monday, May 8
9 a.m. - 12 p.m. GO PAINT EAU CLAIRE, SOCIAL PAINT
Let’s paint in Rod and Gun Park in Eau Claire, Wisconsin on the banks of Half Moon Lake.Tuesday, May 9
4 - 8 p.m. GO PAINT ALTOONA, SOCIAL PAINT
Let’s paint in River Prairie Park, Altoona, Wisconsin, on the banks of the Eau Claire River.Wednesday, May 10
12 - 4 p.m. GO PAINT DURAND, SOCIAL PAINT
Let’s paint in Lower Chippewa View Park, Durand, Wisconsin, on the banks of the Chippewa River.Thursday, May 11
4 - 8 p.m. GO PAINT LEINIE LODGE, SOCIAL PAINT
Join us at the Leinie Lodge for a night of camaraderie and painting! There is an open deck and access to the rocky shoreline of Duncan Creek. Family and friends are welcome. This event is free and open to the public.Friday, May 12
10 a.m. - 12 p.m. SUBMIT ARTWORK
Artists must turn in work for judging to Pablo Center at the Confluence. Awards will be determined by the jurors and cash prizes will be announced at our Awards Ceremony and Reception.6 - 8 p.m. MEET THE ARTISTS RECEPTION & AWARD CEREMONY
Join us for an evening in celebration of the artists of GO Paint! Chippewa Valley. All artwork will be for sale at this time.Meet the GO Paint! Jurors
GO Paint! Chippewa Valley Awards Juror and Featured Artist: Dan Wiemer
"I am obsessed with design, negative shape making and the ruggedness of the north. These obsessions led me to study Canadian painters, most notably Tom Thomson and the Group of Seven, who worked primarily in the early 1900’s. The illustrative style is personally relatable to me. Their career paths evolved from graphic designers, to illustrators, to painters. This has been my path as well.
Finding rhythm in the landscape has become a hallmark of my work. Rhythm to me is connecting highlight shapes with linked shadow shapes in an interesting way that creates movement and pathways for the eye.
My technique uniquely combines opaque acrylic with transparent watercolor that stylizes the landscape and is influenced by printmakers and batik artists. Their approach to creating negative shapes is similar to how I construct and distill my scenes.
Painting on location (plein air) and in the studio are different experiences and bring different perspectives to my work. As a past president of the MN Watercolor Society, I saw firsthand the endless variety of ways to handle watermedia. This excited me and drove me to explore and develop the distinctive style I have today.
I was fortunate to have two extended stays in China-- painting, teaching and exhibiting. In addition to China, I have painted in Puerto Rico, Scotland, Ireland, Canada and throughout the United States." - Juror, Dan Wiemer
GO Paint! Chippewa Valley Quick Paint Judge and Founding Member: Jean Accola
Jean Accola has been a painter most of her life. In 1980 she moved to rural Western Wisconsin where she lived a creative life with her musician husband and two children.
In 1985 she opened the Accola Gallery in Durand WI, where she continues to work and exhibit. She has studied with many influential artists that helped her establish her skills in watercolor, oil, and acrylic. Jean Accola founded the Fresh Art Tour in 1998 and the GO Paint! Plein Air painting event in 2013 and is now looking forward to years of “just painting”.