We are thrilled to have nationally acclaimed artist Lori Putnam as Cape Ann Plein Air’s 2024 distinguished Event Awards Judge. Lori’s approach? “In a respected Plein Air competition such as Cape Ann Plein Air, it is assumed that participating artists will possess a high-level of facility and work confidently in their chosen medium. Good basics such as drawing skills, color harmony, and design are the first three indicators that a painting deserves a closer look. Edges, texture, line, and tone, as each relates to the artist’s chosen style, have to be examined. At that point, what bubbles to the top will be those paintings in which the artist demonstrates mastery. Next, I turn to what the organizer’s mission is in having the festival in the first place. From the CAPA website, “We share a common vision of celebrating the beauty and diversity of our surroundings through art. Plein air painting is all about artists interpreting their immediate environment, capturing the light, colors, and atmosphere of a place.” Finally I come to the hardest part, selecting the best of the best, and narrowing down the top 30 to the top 20, then 10, and so on. For that, I look for the one thing that is most important to me, the artist’s visual statement. That is, do I “see” the artist’s vision for the painting? Is what they wanted to say being said loud and clear? Were they creative in how they presented the subject? Does the work grab attention immediately and leave me wanting to examine it again and again and again? “