Plein air painting is important to gather sources for a final studio piece, but I also see potential in just coming back over and over. The Hudson River Fellowship makes returning to one spot multiple times very convenient, and some of my more successful pieces from last year were painted over multiple days. If I could choose to do any type of work it would be to plein air paint, and to give myself the time that successful work demands.

Eric Leichtung (b. 1995) is an award winning painter from Queens, New York. From a young age, he would voraciously draw and was introduced to painting in highschool. He attended Rhode Island School of Design where he received a BFA in Illustration, and has studied at the Grand Central Atelier under Jacob Collins. He is a 2021 & 2022 recipient of the Hudson River Fellowship. He has exhibited work across the East coast, and his work is included in numerous private collections across the United States.