New Iberia’s annual plein air competition is gearing up once again with a new host as the City of New Iberia takes over the popular contest from Shadows-on-the-Teche. 

The annual event, which starts on March 8, will see professional plein air artists from all over the country heading to the Teche Area to survey some of Acadiana’s most beautiful landscapes and create their own artistic renderings that will be judged for the event. 

All of the artists competing in this year’s competition were selected by a juried panel  and includes artists from Louisiana, New York, Alabama, Washington and many other states, and will all be spending the week in southwest Louisiana to work on plein air paintings for the competition. 

Plein air, or en plein air, is a style of painting that focuses on landscapes and has the artist painting directly near their subject. New Iberia has hosted a plein air competition for 11 years  and has drawn in many people from all over the country to take part in the annual event. 

This year’s judge is Beth Bathe from Lancaster, Pa, an award-winning plein air artist who has painted in the form since 2013. 

The winners for the competition will be decided on March 14 at the Sliman Theater, where Bathe will announce this year’s winners and award over $10,000 in cash and prizes. 

The finished work from the 26 artists will be exhibited at the Sliman and available for purchase throughout competition week at the Sliman. 

Throughout the week, the artists will head to Delcambre, Lafayette and downtown New Iberia to find their inspiration and create their own paintings using the landscape of each to finish their piece. Artists will also be able to venture out on their own to discover locations that appeal to them for a painting subject.