On August 25, 1916, with a stroke of a pen, President Woodrow Wilson signed an act that created the National Park Service—and that would result, 100 years later, in the protection and preservation of 59 national parks, encompassing approximately 51.9 million acres in 27 states. That act was inspired, in large part, by the Hudson River School painters, who eagerly painted the majestic landscape of the West. Perhaps best known is Thomas Moran, who became famous for his paintings of the Rocky Mountains and whose Western landscapes are credited as being critical to the creation of Yellowstone National Park.
In 2015, the national parks drew more than 307 million visitors. Over the years, they also have drawn countless artists, each intent on capturing their pristine beauty. On the following pages, we share with you paintings by six of those artists.
Josh Elliot (Montana)
Fern Grove
Oil
24″x24″
Rocky Mountain National Par “Rocky Mountain National Park was where my dad, artist Stephen Elliott, taught me to paint. We would drive up Big Thompson Canyon in all seasons, wondering what we would find to paint, but knowing it would be spectacular. I remember—he does, too—asking him, ‘Are you saying that, as an artist, you get to travel around and look at cool stuff?’ That sealed the deal for me; I decided that is what I wanted to try to do. “No doubt, some of the best places to paint are in our national parks.
William Scott Jennings
Mystique
Oil
36″x60″
Grand Canyon National Park “I head out early in the morning and find a scene so sublime that it takes my breath away. Often, I find several and have to make a quick decision, so I can get started attacking my canvas. This is nearly a given, when I am in one of America’s national parks. My favorite time to visit our parks is during the off season, when the crowds are gone, and I have it all to myself.
Charles Muench
Bridal Veil Mists
Oil
28″x36″
Yosemite National Park “For me, the biggest challenge of painting in our national parks is discovering something unique to say. The sheer beauty and grandeur can be overwhelming and humbling. It takes time to get to know a place. I find the time I spend listening to the landscape as important as creating field paintings. I have been to Zion every year since 1998 and have developed friendships with some of its monolithic shapes.
Kathryn Stats (Arizona)
Morning Shadows
Oil
30″x40″
Zion National Park “I visited many national parks in the West from early childhood. When returning to these parks many years later, with a painter’s eye, my early memories of sunlight on red rock, light streaking through the pine trees with rivers, waterfalls, and emerald pools, were reawakened. Over the years, our relationship with nature has evolved from dominance to stewardship. It is this preservation that I am most grateful for, as it continues to inspire us with awe and beauty.”
William Hook
Leaning Pine
Acrylic
24″x24″
Grand Canyon National Park “Memories of family vacations to the national parks were quite possibly the beginning of my interest in landscape painting. Growing up in Kansas City, Missouri, my family would spend August of most years at the family cabin outside Rocky Mountain National Park near Allenspark, Colorado. Climbing the ‘Fourteeners’ became a passion, as was fishing the streams and ponds hidden deep in those woods.”
Kevin Macpherson
Rich Reds of Zion
Oil
11″x14″
Zion National Park “Plein air painters seek natural beauty wherever it can be found, sometimes surprisingly wedged between two buildings in an urban environment. We all witnessed in our lifetimes how so-called progress can eat away at our natural surroundings. Americans are blessed that our national parks have been preserved. We are able to experience the same scenes that great artists like Thomas Moran saw and painted, helping to lure Easterners to the West.”
