Archives for Landscape

Nature’s Impact

Nature’s Impact

September 22, 2014 | by

A paintbrush or lump of clay in the hands of Arizona artist Ed Mell becomes transcendent. What his eyes see often becomes transformed at his hand. Puffy clouds, muted purple mountains framed by a peach halo, as the sun slips behind them, become infused with vibrant, electric energy. Forms and colors take on dazzling, brilliant hues and shades. Edges—exact and angular—are honed to razor sharpness. Colors pop. Small plants become omnipresent with captivating clarity, while their surroundings recede. Ed Mell Vast Expanse Oil 30″ x 60″ “I was trying to convey the power and overall glow of sunset on the
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Larger Than Life

Larger Than Life

July 22, 2014 | by

Like no other artist, German-born painter Albert Bierstadt portrayed the unspoiled grandeur of the 19th-century American West. He was known for large canvases, heavy luminosity, towering trees, and gargantuan mountains, while humans and horses were made to look even tinier in comparison. Bierstadt was not the first artist to depict the American West, but the vivid intensity of his work made him, for some time, the preeminent artist of the Western genre. Albert Bierstadt Indians Spear Fishing Oil 19.25″ x 29.25″ Albert Bierstadt Among the Sierra Nevada Mountains Oil 72″ by 120″
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Incurable Glory

Incurable Glory

July 22, 2014 | by

“I belong outdoors. I love painting on location, and I love the beauty and peace that comes with standing before Mother Nature and reacting to her incurable glory.” That, says Kim Lordier, is why she paints landscapes. And she does so beautifully, whether capturing scenes near her home in California, or packing up her pastels and heading to locations in other states. “California is rich in landscape—mountains, desert dynamic coastal range, and everything in between,” she says. Kim Lordier Winter’s Tapestry Pastel 36″ by 24″ “A kaleidoscope of color and pattern . . . chaotic organization . . . dark
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The Softer Side of the West

The Softer Side of the West

July 22, 2014 | by

Spring in the Midwest can be a fickle. One it’s day warm, the next day cold, the next day a blanket of snow settles on the daffodils. Snow is exactly what thwarted a painting trip Montana artist Loren Entz had planned with Alise, his 6-year-old granddaughter, last April. On his way to Kansas, via Omaha, Nebraska, he had stopped to visit his daughter, Rebecca, and was planning to take Alise plein air painting, after hearing a comment she had made not long before. Standing before her mother, Alise had announced, “I don’t know if I want to be a mommy
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Digging Deep

Digging Deep

July 22, 2014 | by

“There are three components to my work. The empirical—what I observe when painting outside. The rational—what I know about the landscape. And the spiritual—how I feel about the subject, my emotional response to it.” So says Joseph McGurl, whose landscape paintings have earned him numerous awards, as well as recognition as one of the country’s most gifted contemporary artists. The fact that he became an artist and that his chosen subjects are the land and sea is no surprise. Born and raised outside Boston, Massachusetts, he spent much of his time on the water. Joseph McGurl Last Light of Winter
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‘I’m Doing What I Love’

‘I’m Doing What I Love’

May 22, 2014 | by

In Shakespeare’s “Hamlet,” Polonius counsels his son Laertes, “To thine own self be true,” offering a sage bit of wisdom that remains relevant four centuries later. In the case of Montana-based landscapist Greg Scheibel, defining and responding to his deep inner “self” became an evolutionary process that required more than two decades to come to fruition. Although Scheibel was born in Minnesota, the 53-year-old artist has been a Montana resident since he was 12, when his father, a contractor, relocated the family to Bozeman in order help build the Big Sky ski area. “As a hockey player on our local
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‘I Want to Surprise Myself’

‘I Want to Surprise Myself’

May 22, 2014 | by

Cross-pollination. It’s a term Colorado-based oil painter Michael Lynch uses to describe his big break into full-time art. That was more than 35 years ago, when he hooked up with other representational artists who reassured him that there was a place for such art amidst the transition to modern art. By then, Lynch already had explored trendy college art programs before settling on a degree in political science from Regis College in Denver, Colorado. He’d entered the workaday world, even considering a career as a lawyer, but his leanings were always toward representational art. Michael Lynch China Cove Oil 6˝
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For the Love of Oils

For the Love of Oils

May 22, 2014 | by

Thankfully, there are men and women who eagerly, although admittedly somewhat fearfully, stand in front of blank canvases and gather their courage—and summon all of their skills—to transform them into wondrous works of art. Before they reach that point, however, they have settled on a medium that they feel is best suited to them and their subjects. The artists we feature here have found, for the most part, what they need in oil paints. Nancy Howe Heliotrope Oil 18˝ by 24˝ “I paint because this is the ‘gift’ I was given, the means for me to grow, appreciate, and navigate
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The Studio of Dennis Doheny

The Studio of Dennis Doheny

May 22, 2014 | by

Driving down a typical residential street in Santa Barbara, California, you wouldn’t guess that a treasure lies hidden in that white stucco house—the one with the salmon-colored trim and Spanish-tiled roof. Pull into the driveway with the attached two-car garage. Can you see it? No? Park behind the family vehicles, and make your way around to the back of the garage; you’ll see it then. Dennis Doheny Gates of Heaven Oil 36˝ by 42˝
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Pleasing the Eye, Gladdening the Heart

Pleasing the Eye, Gladdening the Heart

March 22, 2014 | by

That inspirational verse, taken from his church’s sacred writings, is a rallying cry for Joshua Clare. Seldom constrained by subject matter, the Utah oil painter might choose to paint a barnyard scene, or perhaps capture the evening glow of a desert setting. In his mind, however, he is aiming beyond the elements of art to deliver a specific feeling to the viewer. Joshua Clare (Utah) San Juan Range Oil 36″ x 48″ “Ridgeway, Colorado, and the surrounding area is one of my favorite places in the world. It’s incredibly beautiful. This view of the San Juan Range was painted from
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