KINVARA PLEIN AIR 2026
The annual Kinvara Plein Air festival 2026 will be held over the June bank holiday weekend (29 May-1 June) in the picturesque village of Kinvara and surrounding areas of the Burren and South County Galway.
Workshops
The Kinvara Plein Air festival includes:
full day workshops (12) with a range of experienced plein air tutors, for artists working in oil, acrylic, watercolour or pastel.
Workshops take place at various locations throughout Kinvara village and the surrounding countryside, all within a comfortable 30-minute drive.
Each session runs from 10am to 4pm with a lunch break, beginning indoors with an introduction before moving outside to paint. Indoor shelter is available should weather conditions require it, though workshops run rain or shine.
Throughout the day, you'll receive demonstrations, guidance and feedback from your tutor. At the workshop's close, participants are encouraged to display their work on easels, creating an informal gallery to share the day's creations. To ensure everyone receives personalized attention and has the best possible learning experience, we limit the number of places available.
Please note that workshops are subject to sufficient enrolment, and we reserve the right to cancel and provide a full refund if necessary.
WORKSHOPS SCHEDULE
Monday 1 June: Charity Paint out 10.00 am - 2.30pm in Kinvara Village
Note: For the Saturday workshop in the Burren College of Art (with Dave West) car pooling will be necessary due to limited parking.
Jenny Aitken
Workshops:
Friday 29 May, Burren Art College
Sunday 31 May: Kilcornan Walled Garden
Jenny lives on the edge of the Peak District in the UK. Since graduation in Art & Art History from seaside university Aberystwyth in 1998, Jenny has exhibited nationally and internationally and won many awards. She was elected a full member of the RSMA in 2023, and won the prestigious Baltic Exchange Award in the same year.
She is currently represented by the Whitethorn gallery in Ireland, The Harbour Gallery in Cornwall and the Peter Barker Gallery in Rutland. You can also view and purchase daily studies, paintings, prints, calendars and cards from her own online gallery.
Jenny has a book on oil painting out with Search Press in Spring 2024, and is a regular contributor to The Artist Magazine. She is also an online tutor, with a series of 25+ modules on painting in oils and acrylics. Teaching painting is a passion – her main aim is for students to be encouraged, informed and creatively enthused.
Steve Browning
Workshop:
Sunday 31 May, Kinvara Village
In this workshop Steve will particularly focus on including figures when painting plein air - something he has mastered to great acclaim.
Following graduation from the Leicester School of Art & Design and working as an Art Director in London advertising agencies Steve moved to Ireland in 1995. Inspired by the beauty of the Irish landscape in 2002 he decided to take the plunge and paint full-time. Over the years he has developed a particular style of painting Plein Air and has become known for his ability to paint figures. As well as winning numerous prizes at Dublin Plein Air Festival and Wexford’s Art in the Open Festival he has also been a finalist in the prestigious Plein Air Magazine of America's annual art competition and won the best acrylic painting award in 2022.
Website: www.stevebrowning.net
Instagram: stevebrowningpaintings
Facebook: stevebrowning
Kieran Guckian
Workshop:
Saturday 30 May, Thoor Ballylee
Born in Dublin, Ireland, Kieran's art journey began with a love of ornithology and drawing birds. His first mentor and teacher was Sister Maureen McMahon and he went on to attend Crawford College of Art and Design graduating with a BA (Hons) in Fine Art Painting. Painting on location from life is central to Kieran's practice and his location work informs his more conceptual studio pieces.
Kieran has exhibited in the RHA annual and reached the final of Sky Arts Landscape Artist of the Year in 2025 where the three finalists painted Stonehenge. He currently splits his time between painting on location and in studio in MART Studios in Dublin.
In his workshop Kieran will focus on sharing his painting process, from subject choice and compositions to finding realism through colour and values. His aim will be to focus on sharing his knowledge and helping participants throughout the workshop.
Website: https://www.kieranguckian.art
Instagram: @kguckian
Janet Buell
Workshop:
Sunday 31 May: Kinvara Village
Geared mostly to those unfamiliar with soft pastels or those wanting a refresher, we’ll explore different commercial pastel surfaces and learn how to make your own. Using both subtle and energetic mark-making, you’ll discover the different characteristics of your pastel sticks — all without finger-blending,
Expect to complete a soft pastel landscape by the end of the day. You’ll also receive a comprehensive list of resources and notes.
* This workshop will not cover the uses of either pan pastels or oil pastels.
Janet spent her life not being an artist until 2011 when she caught the soft pastel bug. After she moved to Ireland, Janet started teaching herself how to use the medium. In 2020, she formalized her studies, and enroled in an online pastel academy taught by American master pastellist Alain Picard. She studied with Alain for three years.
Janet has had multiple solo and group exhibitions in the west of Ireland, and is a keen participant in Open Exhibitions and Juried Shows/Open Calls.
Credit: The image of Janet above is from a painting by Trish Findlater.
Instagram: @janetbuellart
Róisín Curé
Workshop:
Friday 29 May, Kinvara Village
Róisín Curé is a sketcher, teacher, product designer and bestselling author from Galway. Since 2015 she has conducted urban sketching courses across Europe, and since 2020 she has taught a vibrant global community of sketchers online. She makes YouTube videos and writes a regular blog, all on the theme of living the life of a daily sketcher. Her compulsion to sketch in the most unlikely of places led to the invention of the SketchPocket, a specialist bag for artists.
In this illustrated reportage workshop, Róisín will guide you in sketching in the everyday life of Kinvara Village: the market, the pier, the colourful main street. We’ll do this standing up and on the move, using a minimal kit: just five watercolour half pans, water brush, pen & ink and sketchbook, capturing the fleeting moments that are part of the simplicity and magic of capturing real life in ink and watercolour. You don’t need experience but you need to be able to stand for up to an hour at a time.
Bettina Norton
Workshop:
Sunday 31 May, Thoor Ballylee
Bettina is an artist originally from Kildare but now living and working in South Kilkenny. Since graduating from Trinity College, Dublin with a Master’s Degree in art history she initially worked in antique dealing abroad in London and The Middle East before returning to Ireland in the late 90's. Since 2012 she has been gradually growing her art practice and is now represented by several galleries around the country. Working in both oil & cold wax and other mixed media her method is intuitive and expressive. Drawing inspiration from our coastal landscape with expressive paintings that bring an immediate and immersive experience of the power of the Irish landscape. The Kinvara workshops will give you an insight in how to use cold wax over other mixed media in order to paint quickly in Plein Air. Initial layers in ink and acrylic dry fast to provide a quick intuative underpainting which can be augmented by cold wax layers. If you would like to free up your practice and create expressive, atmospheric paintings, this is the workshop for you.
Note: Supplies of cold wax and ink will be provided for the workshop.
Website: wwwbettinanortoanfinearts.com
Instagram: @bettinanortonfinearts
Facebook: bettinanortonfinearts
Grahame Booth
Workshops:
Saturday 30 May, Kilcornan Walled Garden
Sunday 31 May: Burren Art College
Grahame Booth is one of Ireland’s best known watercolour painters and tutors. Over almost four decades he has taught watercolour at workshops across the world from the USA to India and his paintings have won many national and international awards. He has written several books on watercolour techniques and has contributed to many others. His latest book, Plein Air Painting with Watercolours was published last July. Grahame has written many articles for The Artist and Artists and Illustrators magazines in the UK and he has a strong online presence including over 40000 subscribers to his YouTube painting channel. During the workshops he will show how to observe and capture the unique feel and atmosphere of Kinvara and the surrounding area without resorting to unnecessary detail.
Web: www.grahamebooth.com
FaceBook: GrahameBoothWatercolour
Instagram: @grahameboothwatercolour
John Dinan
Workshop:
Saturday 30 May, Kinvara Village
John has been a fulltime artist for the past twenty five years, after switching from the world of business to follow his lifelong passion. He shares his time between mostly painting and occasionally teaching workshops.
He is most known for plein air landscape paintings, but he also paints still lifes and commissioned portraits from his studio near Cong in Co. Mayo. He never wanted to be restricted to one style of painting, and his landscapes can vary from subtle neutral grays, through naturally coloured views to bright slightly abstract versions.
His workshops receive great feedback, as he shares everything he’s learned over more than 50 years painting. In Kinvara, he will demonstrate his Ten Step approach to plein air painting then give one to one advice in between shorter demos throughout the day.
His artwork is shown in several high street galleries around Ireland. At this stage, his work is held in many corporate and private collections in Ireland and overseas, particularly in the USA.
Website: johndinan.ie
Instagram: john.dinan.39
Facebook: John Dinan
Mavis Gormally
Workshop:
Friday 29 May, Thoor Ballylee
Mavis Gormally is a New York–born artist and educator now based in South Galway, where the Irish landscape continually inspires her work. A graduate of New York City’s School of Visual Arts, she divides her time between teaching and her full-time painting practice. Known for her expressive plein air and studio paintings, Mavis captures the light, texture, and quiet beauty of Ireland’s coastlines, villages, and countryside. Her paintings are held in private collections throughout Europe and the United States.
At the 2026 plein air event, Mavis welcomes new painters and those eager to grow their confidence and skills. Her workshops offer a relaxed, encouraging environment where participants learn to simplify complex scenes, create strong compositions, manage changing light, and mix colour with purpose—all while enjoying the joy of painting outdoors. See her work on her website www.mavisart.com
Email address mavisartstudio@gmail.com
Social media handles
Facebook: MavisGArt
Instagram: mavisart_galway
Dave West
Workshops:
Friday 29 May: Kinvara Village
Saturday 30 May: Burren Art College
Dave West was born and raised in South Wales before moving to Ireland in the mid-90’s where he now lives and works as a full-time artist.
He is particularly drawn to areas of decay like boatyards and ramshackle falling-down farmhouses, where the complex web of texture, shape and pattern offers exciting possibilities for exploring the material qualities of oil paint. For his workshop Dave will be focusing on principles of good design and finding an effective pattern of atmospheric light.
Dave has exhibited with many of Ireland and the UK’s arts societies including the Royal Academy, Royal Hibernian Academy, Royal Ulster Academy, Royal Institute of Oil Painters, The New English Art Club and the Royal Society of Marine Artists of which he was recently elected an Associate Member. In 2025 and 2017 Dave won first prize at ‘Art in the Open’, Europe’s largest plein air festival.
Website: www.davewest.ie
Instagram: @davewestart
