Hawaii Island En Plain Air by Betty Hay Freeland

A master of plein air painting, Betty Hay Freeland captures the dramatic beauty of Hawaii in her work. Witnessing the evolution of the Islands from her days as a child in Kohala, to her years on Oahu and Maui, Betty Hay has a gift for imagining and portraying images of “old Hawaii” before the arrival of man.

Working in oils, she often starts with brushwork for the background before building up the foreground with a palette knife. The impasto in her work added to the rich colors and textures she uses to capture the light and life of the landscape. Viewing Betty Hay’s works, you will feel a magic that shifts as you approach each piece. From a distance, Hawaii’s grand landscapes are perfectly embodied on the canvas, and as you explore them up close, you’re met with subtleties in color and texture—all the tiny decisions that create each remarkable work of art.

“I have explored so many spectacular coastlines, valleys, mountains, and parts of Hawaii that are now changed and developed. Documenting Hawaii in this way has provided me a joy-filled life,” says Betty Hay, whose work can be found in private and corporate collections around the world.