Archives for Oil

Nature and the Human Soul

September 1, 2022 | by Brandon Rosas

In some ways, personally and professionally, Sally Vannoy’s life might seem like a fairytale. She married the man of her dreams in a beautiful setting in Glacier National Park, was accepted into the Society of Animal Artists as a Signature Member on her first attempt, and has seen her works hang beside original Charles M. Russell paintings at the famous Triple Creek Ranch. As in many classic stories, however, the heroine had to leave her comfort zone in order to reach her potential. “I had the most amazing childhood and family life growing up,” says Vannoy, who grew up with
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Beauty Abounds

September 1, 2022 | by Sara Gilbert Frederick

Three years ago, artist Howard Friedland and his wife Susan Blackwood—also an artist—moved from Bozeman, Montana to Bella Vista, Arkansas. The couple had lived in Bozeman since getting married in 1998 and loved everything about it—especially the spacious studio they shared in their home there. But they had grown weary of the heavy snowfalls that often extended into April and May and of the smoke from Western forest fires that made plein air painting a challenge during the summer months. When they visited Jeff Legg, an artist friend, at his home in the Ozarks, they realized that relocating to Arkansas
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The Studio of John Fawcett

September 1, 2022 | by Vicki Stavig

In late May, after a four-day drive from their home near Gettysburg, Pennsylvania, John and Elizabeth Fawcett happily drove through the gates to their home in Clark, Colorado. It’s an annual event that includes pulling a large horse trailer occupied by the couple’s two horses and all of Fawcett’s paint supplies. “We looked like the Beverly Hillbillies,” he says with a laugh. Located on a 52-acre ranch the Fawcetts named Double LL—which Fawcett says stands for Lucky (me) and Lizzie (Elizabeth)—the property is 25 miles north of Steamboat Springs. Willow Creek runs through the ranch and attracts deer and elk,
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Painting and Peace

September 1, 2022 | by Myrna Zanetell

Sherry Harrington has a strong affection for Texas, where she was born, raised, and continues to live. Vast fields of Texas Bluebonnets or cowboys herding cattle, however, are not the subjects of her paintings. She much prefers to fill her canvases with portraits of beautiful Native American women and children. “I have always loved people, but I am especially drawn to depicting members of the tribes in the desert Southwest—the Navajo, Apache, Cheyenne, and Sioux to name but a few,” Harrington says. “Perhaps this is due in part to the fact that my paternal grandmother was half-American Indian. Even as
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An Artist on a Mission

September 1, 2022 | by Mary Nelson

As a young child, Joe Kronenberg drew voraciously. Today, as an adult, he is an artist on a mission. “As an artist in the 21st century, I strive to create paintings that embody the aesthetic and objective standards of the 19th century European academic art world,” he says. It’s a style he believes has been lost in an instant-gratification world. Growing up in the Pacific Northwest, Kronenberg filled his room—as well as the rest of the house—with realistic artwork of the area’s grandeur. In his mind, it was just a matter of time before he would become an artist. That
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Painting From His Soul

June 30, 2022 | by Vicki Stavig

William Suys doesn’t limit himself in what he paints or how he paints it, whether it’s an animal, a person, a landscape, or a still life. The only constant is that he strives to imbue each of his works with personality, presence, and power. He accomplishes each of those goals with great skill. “I want the process of my painting to be personal, completely from my soul,” Suys says. “I want to paint what I feel, and I’ve been doing more of that. If I can paint something that is meaningful for me and do a better job of laying
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Anything is Possible

June 30, 2022 | by Brandon Rosas

“It’s incredible how magical the desert is when you go with the intention of self-reflection,” says Colorado artist Anna Rose Bain, who began a tradition of taking solo trips to the California desert when she was struggling with severe adrenal fatigue just before the start of COVID. “I found that I was getting burnt out at least twice a year, to a point where it was affecting my health and my relationships,” says Bain, who balances painting with raising two young children and practicing CrossFit, a high-intensity fitness program. “I started going to the desert to recharge and meditate and
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A Burning Obsession

June 30, 2022 | by Sara Gilbert Frederick

As a child, Susan Eyer-Anderson would sneak into the garage to watch her father paint. He worked long hours as the manager of a silkscreen plant in Los Angeles, California, but he spent his evenings and weekends painting in the family garage in rural Orange County. It was intended to be a quiet sanctuary, and three of his four children respected that enough to stay clear of the space. But Eyer-Anderson was too intrigued by the work he did in the garage to stay away. “I couldn’t help it,” she says. “I was so fascinated by it, so I would
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“I Paint What I Love”

June 30, 2022 | by Myrna Zanetell

The vibrant images of Douglas Aagard’s landscapes radiate a joy that conveys his love for everything from flaming red and gold leaves in the fall to the azure blue of a meandering stream to the lushness of a mountain valley. He loves it all and captures it brilliantly. The 54-year-old artist was born in Utah but grew up near Corvallis, Montana, in the shadow of the Bitterroot Mountains. “Evenings were my favorite time of day because I could watch the changing colors of the valley as the sun set behind the mountains,” he says. During summers at his grandparents’ sheep
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The Studio of Len Babb

June 30, 2022 | by Clover Neiberg

In the almost-darkness just before sunrise, a retired cowboy emerges from his house and silently walks the short distance to a small, tidy log building with a sheltered porch. He takes a seat near the handmade door, easing his old bones onto a bench created from a split log. There, with Oregon’s high desert spread out before him and the sun coming up pink beyond the distant dark mountains, he makes his preparations for the day. Once inside, he builds a fire in the little, round wood stove in the corner, warming his hands before the flames. In the thin
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