On Saturday May 2nd, 2009, the Indianapolis Zoo opened their doors to fifteen select artists from around Indiana to spend the day painting en plein air (in the open air) on the grounds of the Zoo and White River Gardens. Being one of the select fifteen I had the opportunity to experience this event from the inside. I arrived at the zoo a little after 10 am and was greeted by one of the organizers, Meg Magsamen Special Events Manager at the zoo, who handed us a packet of information and let us know that we were welcome to paint anywhere on the grounds and we were free to choose any subject from butterflies to zebras. The public was invited as well to come and witness the artists at work.

It was time to begin, so I scooped up my paint, canvas and easel and began to walk; did I also mention that I was carrying a small stool? Feeling much like the pack mules I was passing along my walk, I was eager to reach my destination. I had made up my mind days in advance that if the sun was out I would paint the elephants. On this particular day the sun was warmer than it had been all week. Not quite worn out by the time I reached the back nine of the zoo's grounds, I settled in, directly in front of the elephant herd, and began to instantly sketch out the elephants onto my rather large 30" by 30" canvas.

Two other artists chose to make the long trek back to the west end of the zoo, one, with her son, was painting the elephants and the other was painting the zebras that were just around the corner from us. As the morning moved along, the crowd grew which brought out the Daisy Troops, children's birthday parties and many, many curious families and on lookers. I have to say, as an artist, if you are ever feeling down about your abilities, spend a day creating art in a public space and you will feel like Da Vinci by the time you are done. The zoo's patrons were so kind and were thrilled to stop and talk with each of us about our process and drawings. The children of course are the biggest admirers, although I did have one little girl tell me, "Elephants are not Blue, they are Grey!" I thought it was sweet that her mother apologized for her child's honesty. I did a agree with the child most elephants are not blue. However, I am an abstract painter so in my world things are rarely what they seem.

By 1:30 pm lunch was brought around to each artist, which then takes away the theory of the starving artist as we all took a moment to indulge in something delicious before getting back to creating. I knew closing time would be here before I knew it. Luckily we did not have to turn our paintings in at the end of the day, we were allowed to keep them until the following Tuesday if we needed to add touch ups.

The hands on the clock seem to be moving faster on me as the day continued and I was swarmed with children watching me struggle in the sun to keep my paints wet and my skin from burning any more. It was now the elephants turn to a little bit of shade and lunch and I lost my muse. I had been painting Zahara, one of the youngest elephants in the herd and she was now being moved to the back area. She was off exhibit for the rest of the day. Talk about smacking down an inspiration, but I survived. I took some photos and a few sketches of her to help me finish the painting without her instant visual. By the time 5 pm rolled around I was exhausted from standing in the sun for seven hours and was ready for a more adult-themed beverage. Even feeling exhausted I could not have asked for a better experience painting at the zoo.

Being involved in my own painting that day I never had the chance to see any of the other artist's creations, although I did hear about penguins being created out of clay and beautiful paintings of giraffes. I will need to make a trip out to the Zoo to see the completed exhibit soon. So, next time you are out at the White River Gardens stop in at the Schaefer Rotunda to see the artworks that were created during the Paint Out. They will be on display from May 29 to August 27, and then will be auctioned off to support the Zoo's mission at a special reception on August 27th. More information on the Naturally Inspired Paint Out Reception can be found at www.indianapoliszoo.com