"I just wanted to thank you for giving me a great gift."In 2005 I attended a workshop of yours in Waynesboro, Virginia and I was probably the most hopeless student you ever had. I was a wannabe and not prepared in anyway to take a landscape workshop. But I listened and watched you stand out in cold miserable weather like it was a balmy day and was so impressed. The wonderful packet you put together for us is still what I refer to each year when the weather turns nice and I once again attempt plein air painting. (I am more of a studio painter but love going out when the weather is nice.) I of course love your book but the "Tool Kit" is what I swear by. I am sure that was a very time consuming project for you so I just wanted to say thank you and that I am forever grateful.""Barbara Nuss's plein air painting workshop was a success on all fronts. An award-winning artist, she is also an excellent, clear and experienced teacher who has full command of her tools. During the 2-day workshop students were introduced to a variety of thoughtful, helpful approaches. Ms. Nuss provided the intellectual tools to create successful paintings (What tones are flat planes in sunlight? In shade?). Moreover, she also provided physical tools that supported us in making accurate observations. We experimented with value scales and other tools that sharpened our ability to accurately "read" a landscape and translate it into paint. "The venues were carefully chosen to set up specific painting challenges: how to incorporate far distances into the landscape; how to narrow the focus of the painting; how to create a dynamic composition when the landscape doesn't offer it up at first glance.
"I recommend this workshop to anyone who wants to create beautiful paintings outdoors ... and who wants to enjoy it along the way."
"Barbara Nuss is a master of composition and composition is the essential ingredient of good painting. The first time I saw her work I found that I could not take my eyes off the painting."It seemed to cast a spell from which my eyes could not escape. When I saw it I said "I want to make paintings like that!" "In her plein air workshops, Barbara gives students the recipe for this magic spell. Her years of experience painting and teaching enable her to lead the student easily through each step of her process of plein air landscape painting. As she goes she adds the tools needed to portray landscape at its best: value, perspective, what to include, what to leave out. She actually gives her students the physical as well as the informational tools they need to create paintings that "work." "On top of communicating simply and clearly the fundamentals, she imparts the freedom of creativity; to create what you want rather than only what you see. She took me to a whole new level when she showed me how to take something which might be considered ugly and make it beautiful, how to move mountains, create rivers from roadways and entrances from blockades."The years Barbara studied and copied master classic landscape paintings in national museums yielded a harvest rich in every aspect of landscape and she makes all of this available to her students. I am certain that the "Best in Show" prize I recently won was the direct result of her instruction and influence."