McKinney Plein Air Society

08/01/2026

Highlights ✨️ from today's Paintout.

07/31/2026

PAINT OUT
visiting artists welcome!
Saturday, AUGUST 1, 2026
Paint 9:00 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.
Picnic and Air 'em Out
12:30 p.m. - 1:00 p.m
Bring a sack lunch. Show and tell.
at

Bonnie Wenk Park
2996 Virginia Pkwy
McKinney, TX 75071

park opens at 5:00 a.m.; closes at 11:00 p.m.

Greetings McKinney Plein Air Society Members and Friends!

Please note that our location has changed to Bonnie Wenk Park in McKinney where there is a lot more shade than we would be able to find at Monarch Park in Frisco. In this extreme heat, we need to take every precaution we can to have a fun yet safe plein air experience. Please paint in the shade, wear a hat and lots of sunscreen, bring and drink plenty of cold water, wear a neck cooler scarf thingy, clip on a personal fan or two -- do everything you can to stay hydrated and cool while painting out in this beautiful park. The park opens at 5:00 a.m and it starts to get light around 6:15 or 6:30 a.m. if you want to arrive early and beat the heat. We will find picnic tables or a cool place in the shade for our brown bag lunch and time to see what we painted.

Be sure to register for McKinney En Plein Air 2026 coming up on October 2-3. Details below.

See you out there!

Pernie Fallon

06/06/2026

Highlights from our paintout today! ✨️🎨🖼

06/04/2026

Greetings McKinney Plein Air Society Members and Friends!

Our PAINT OUT this month covers two locations.

To start off, we will gather at East Fork Park at Lake Lavon around 10:00 a.m. The park is open from 10:00 in the morning until 6:00 that evening. Of course, you can paint on your own time during these hours. There is a $5.00 entry fee per car so you may want to consider carpooling with a friend. Pick a location that catches your eye and set up to paint. We can paint where the blue squares are shown on the map above. The blue squares are the picnic tables overlooking the lake. We do not have a pavilion reserved at Lavon Lake this year.

After you paint and picnic, head down the road about a mile and a half to the In-Sync Exotic Wildlife Refuge. This excursion is optional and also on your own schedule. It's a grand experience to be amongst these majestic animals and a great opportunity for photographs and sketching. They have asked that we do not bring in our easels and painting equipment because it is upsetting to the animals. But sketchbooks, cameras and phones are fine. Take some time to sit with these exotic big cats and capture their beauty and great presence.

Registration for McKinney En Plein Air 2026 opens soon. Our Awards Judge will be Rosaine Bodiford. It's sure to be another fun event -- our 5th!

We won't meet in July since the first Saturday falls on the 4th. Enjoy your Independence Day celebration.

See you out there!

Pernie Fallon

05/20/2026

Highlights from our paint out at Thuong Hanh Buddhist Monastery. ✨️

05/13/2026

Greeting McKinney Plein Air Society!

Thuong Hanh Buddhist Monastery warmly invites MPAS to join their upcoming One Day Meditation Practice Retreat on Saturday, May 16, 2026. During this retreat, they would like us to paint on their beautiful grounds where you will find a wide range of subject matter: landscaped Zen gardens, a large Buddhist bell, a koi pond, the largest Buddhist statue in Texas, and a traditional Vietnamese tea house.

If you are interested, you are also welcome to participate in any aspect of the Meditation Retreat. We can begin setting up to paint around 9:00 a.m. and you may paint as you wish until 3:00 p.m.

A delicious vegetarian lunch and beverage will be provided by the Monastery promptly at 11:30 a.m until 12:00 noon.

05/04/2026

Highlights from EnPlein Air competition in Bonham Texas. We had a blast painting in Bonham! Thank you

04/29/2026

PLEASE NOTE: Many MPAS members are painting in the Plein Air Contest put on by the Creative Arts Center in Bonham on May 1 and 2. Our paint out for May 2 is in Bonham whether you are painting in the Plein Air Contest or not. You are invited to attend the Reception and Awards Ceremony beginning at 5:00 p.m. at the Creative Arts Center, 200 West Fifth, Bonham. MAP

Saturday, May 2 - various Paint Out locations in Bonham, Texas

paint out all day -- you are on your own time and location of your choice

04/27/2026

Highlights from the Blackland Prairie Raptor Center paintout 🎨 in Lucas Tx

04/25/2026