I am drawn to working en plein air because it is essential for both my development as a studio artist and for shaping my relationship with the world around me. Painting outdoors grounds me in reality, providing much-needed tranquility for my mind. Forging a profound connection with the landscape is, to me, the ultimate expression of gratitude for my existence. This is why, upon graduating from the academy, I chose to embrace a rugged van-dwelling existence. While painting, I endeavor to cultivate an intimate bond with the branches of a tree or the subtle details of a rock formation.

In addition to the spiritual fulfillment that plein air painting offers, it also serves as a practical springboard for my larger, more imaginative studio works. I often integrate multiple landscapes into composite pieces in the studio. My objective is to capture the collective energy and essence of the landscape by observing it en plein air from various perspectives.

Clarissa Kear (b. 1998) is a painter based in West Philadelphia. Originally from rural
Pennsylvania, her upbringing on an organic farm instilled a deep connection to the outdoors.
In 2017, she was awarded a full scholarship to the Pennsylvania Academy of the Fine Arts
(PAFA), where she focused on painting and printmaking, though she is primarily recognized for
her large-scale oil paintings. In 2021, she received the Richard C. Von Hess Memorial
Scholarship, which granted her a fifth year in the studio at PAFA. During this period, she
completed a cohesive body of large-scale oil paintings for PAFAS Annual Student Exhibition.
In Fall 2022, Clarissa traveled to the United Kingdom and the American Southwest as part of
the Von Hess Travel Scholarship, furthering her plein air landscape practice and using these
experiences to inspire her imaginative studio work. Most recently, she attended the Hudson
River Valley Fellowship, where she produced over 35 original plein air paintings of the scenic
northwest Connecticut region.