The pleasure of plein air painting dates back a long time, even before the Impressionism. In Brazil, by virtue of its warm and natural colors, mainly in Rio, this has always been a very common activity. Please see a photo by 1990 where one can see the most distinguished painters of that time. I had the priviledge to paint with some of them. Please see the nice photo.
In 2002 we started to form a plein air group, eventhough this was not our intention. We come together naturally. Our group was increasing in a nice and harmonious way. It became too big. In 2011, when I had stopped to paint with the group, around one hundred people had already painted with us. We met every other sundays. There were days in which more than twenty people came. It was not only the pleasure of painting, but the pleasure to be together.
Our group had attended the Worldwide Paint Out organized by the International Plein Air Painters, which takes place in a weekend of the september. In the first participation, we had a photo, published in the Plein Air Magazine, december issue, 2004 (it was taken at the entrance of the Empress House, in Horto Florestal, a pleasant and bucolic place in Rio). We were also the inspiration for a nice chronicle (in Portuguese), written by J. Carino, and a wide article in a local newspaper, O Globo-Ilha. We have already made two exhibitions: one in the Tijuca Tennis Clube and another in the Ilha Plaza Shopping.
In 2008, when we had an active community in Orkut, where we discussed about art and painting techniques (not only related to plein air), I had the motivation of writing about the History of Our Group (in Portuguese). It was good moments and their memories will be with me forever.