8 • The Southwest Portland Post
FEATURES
August 2014
Amateur painters discover their inner Van Gogh at group-art events
By KC Cowan
The Southwest Portland Post
If you’re one of those people who
were once told that you “didn’t have
any artistic ability,” so you stopped
trying, good news! It’s not too late to
discover the joy of painting.
PaintNite is a group art experience
where you can enjoy a drink (or more)
while creating a 16” by 20” acrylic paint-
ing under the guidance of a facilitator.
They’re becoming hugely popular, with
sold-out events.
Buffalo Gap Saloon and Eatery
(6835 SW Macadam Ave) regularly
hosts PaintNite. The night I attended,
there were 35 canvases set up, along
with plates of acrylic color, and three
brushes. Bailey Cain was the teacher,
but ignore that title.
“It’s not an art class where you feel
judged, but more like a party,” she said.
“What I really love about it is encour-
aging people who feel they can’t paint,
and making them feel comfortable
enough to try.”
Our project was the “Whimsical
Birds” painting that was at the head of
the room. A blank canvas sat next to it
for Cain to demonstrate.
Cain said there is basically only one
rule: Paint the canvas, not your friends!
She needn’t have worried. While people
were there to have fun, they also want-
ed to take home something they could
be proud of.
Vickie Buckley came for her second
PaintNite. “Painting is in my heart. And
I don’t know how, so to come out with
PaintNite and to get an artist to stand
there and do a play-by-play sketch for
you, and it actually end up looking like
something? I think it’s cool!”
Sue Xiong came with three friends
after hearing about it on Facebook. “I
was really intrigued by the idea of paint
your own painting. I mean, I haven’t
painted since kindergarten, and I don’t
know how it will turn out, but I hear
they have good instructions, so I hope
that’s the case.”
We began with the “big brush” for the
background color. Cain demonstrated
the technique of blending the color from
bright yellow at the top, to orange and
then red in the middle and then dark
red at the bottom.
Music blasted as we painted, which
added to the party feel. Laughter and
conversation bubbled around the room.
As Cain guided us in the next step –
making colorful “swooshes” on the
now-dry background, the comments
began to fly:
“I made too many swooshes!” one
woman lamented. “You can’t have too
many swooshes!” Cain responded.
“I can’t get it to blend right!” another
said. “Try using a little more water to
spread the paint around on the canvas,”
Cain suggested.
Next we painted the vines, then the
birds and before we knew it, our two
hours were up and we were all staring
at an honest-to-God-original work of
art we created ourselves.
Even though we were all copying
the same image, every painting was
unique, because everybody had a
completely different artistic style. Cain
Sue Xiong, Andy Phan, and Anna D'Silva show off their completed paintings.
(Post photo by KC Cowan)
said that’s one thing she loves about
PaintNite.
“They are all so different. People
think I’m acting when I go around
and admire their work, but I’m really
excited to see the direction they go,”
she said.
At the end, everyone seemed happy
with their painting, but even if they
weren’t, one veteran PaintNite patron
said you just have to give it some time.
After you take it home and study it for
a while, you’ll decide it’s pretty darn
good, after all.
There are painting parties weekly, at
different locations around Portland. The
PaintNite website shows what paint-
ings are scheduled for each party.
There’s a huge variety of styles and
subject matter. They’re even rated by
difficulty. The cost is about $45 a night,
but there are often discounts via Grou-
pon. So check it out. Your inner-artist
is waiting!
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