"It seems like whenever we try to meet we always get lost," said member Darlene Monroe of the collective group of artists that also features Peter Crabtree, Helen Michlik and Jared Robinson. "Someone would always ask where the PHKOWEE, and that's how the name stuck."

The PHKOWEE group meets at least once a week in the great outdoors with easels, paintbrushes and canvases in hand. The group participates in plein air painting, a concept of art in which artists create art where the subject is in its element.

Monroe said the challenge behind plein air painting is that the subject is constantly evolving. For instance, while a tree may look the same, the shades of the tree will change throughout the course of the day when the sun moves, Monroe said.

"The works tend to be not as polished, they are raw looking," Monroe said. "It takes a tough individual to survive in the great outdoors. When the weather is nice, we are out there. There's plenty of Tim Hortons coffee and you have to survive the sun, mosquitoes and poison ivy. Not everyone can do it."

Each of the work of the respective artists represent a variety of mediums, including oil paints, chalk, pastel, acrylic paint and watercolour. Monroe said there's quite a diversity in the exhibition.

The exhibition runs from July 1 to 31. A special artists reception will take place July 6 from 2 to 4 p.m.

The Niagara Pumphouse Visual Arts Centre is located at 247 Ricardo Street. For more information call 905-468-5455.