Archives for Landscape

Simplicity and Truth

While a passion for simplicity might seem to be a bit of a dichotomy for someone born and raised in the vibrantly active Southern California beach community of Torrence, 38-year-old landscape painter Glenn Dean emphasizes this is the quality he strives for, both in his personal lifestyle and most decidedly in the creation of his dramatic Western landscapes, which portray nature in its most basic forms. Glenn Dean (California) Land of Titans Oil 30″ x 30″ “I’m drawn to the big, simple shapes found in the canyons of the Southwest. I liked the monumental silhouette of this mesa in the
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The Art of Breaking Rules

Dan Bodelson is a rebel. Not a James Dean kind of rebel, not a rebel without a cause, but rather one whose focus is art. You see, so much about art, according to Bodelson, has to do with defying the rules—in essence, rebelling. “In fact, there are no rules,” he says. “Because, if someone says ‘You can’t do that and don’t mix that color with that [other one],’ the first thing an artist will go and do is just what you said not to. Dan Bodelson (New Mexico) Too Cold to Ride Oil 40″ x 30″ “I came across this
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Magical, Mystical Water

Water—whether a stream, lake, river, or ocean—is magical and mysterious, moody and mesmerizing. It can be peaceful or restless, soothing or savage, as it laps softly at a sandy shore or crashes against a rocky cliff. Words cannot begin to describe the beauty, the power, the majesty, of water. That is best accomplished by artists, who are inspired by its many facets and who skillfully capture them with paints. John Budicin (California) Vertigo Oil 8˝ by 18˝ David Drummond (New Mexico) Morning South of Dangling Rope Watercolor 30˝ by 50˝ Carolyn Hesse-Low (California) Shipyard and Kayaks Oil 11″ by 14″
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Happily Held Hostage

Mention landscapes, and the name Clyde Aspevig likely will come to mind. The award-winning artist creates visual feasts, as he recreates the natural beauty of the world that inspires him. From meadows and mountains to lilies and lakes, he transports viewers, taking them by the eye and leading them to the places that inspire him. Aspevig grew up on a farm in the northern part of Montana, where his love of the land took root. He earned a Bachelor of Science Degree in education from Eastern Montana College and taught for a year before leaving the classroom behind to focus
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Art, Pure and Simple

Robert Pummill is an artist—no fanfare, no frills, no desire to grandstand his art or his artistic ideas. Chatting with the Texas artist, you might begin to think he’s taciturn, but you quickly realize that’s not the case. He isn’t interesting in tooting his own horn; he just wants to paint. “I just try to make a good picture that someone enjoys looking at,” Pummill says. “I’m not trying to send a message, and I’m not trying to do something so different that it creates a niche for me.” He goes on to explain that he paints because he wouldn’t
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Answering the Call

“As I step in front of my easel, I make every effort to elevate my painting to art.” So says landscape painter John Burton, who has traveled the world and captured its natural beauty with remarkable skill. He is quick to point out, however, that his artistic talent is the result of dedication and determination. “I think part of any success I have enjoyed in painting has been from working extremely hard at the craft of painting; for example drawing, observation skills, color theory, composition, and design,” he says. John Burton (California) Dallas Divide Oil 16″ x 20″ “Recently I
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Poetic Glimpses

When K. Gavin Brooks, who recently relocated to California, sits down to paint, she reorganizes scenery to omit elements that don’t serve the emotion she wants to capture and convey. True art, she’ll tell you, is in the editing. And in her estimation, less is more. K. Gavin Brooks (Maryland) Eucalyptus Dusk Oil 12˝ by 16˝ “Eucalyptus was painted in Laguna at Moss Point where some old growth trees still stand. I eliminated some infrastructure and tried to keep the painting in keeping with old Laguna and focused on just the relationship between the light and the trees at dusk.”
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‘It’s Always an Adventure’

Charles Warren “C.W.” Mundy’s art career began during vacation Bible school. At 7, he already had a reputation as a bit of a troublemaker. He had been kicked out of kindergarten for making too much noise, getting in fights, and objecting loudly to the idea of a mid-day nap. But that summer, the teacher at vacation Bible school in Mundy’s hometown of Indianapolis, Indiana, where he still lives today, tried a new idea to keep him under control: She assigned him to make a poster for the daily program and hang it in the church. C.W. Mundy (Indiana) Portrait of
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Tenacity and Talent

Edward Aldrich, or Ned as anyone who spends more than five minutes in his company calls him, has been an artist, mostly a wildlife artist, for the past 25 years. It is all that he ever aspired to do. It’s the only kind of work he’s ever done. “If the economy doesn’t turn around pretty soon, I may be in trouble, because art is all I know,” Aldrich says with a laugh. Although he always loved art, and it was always his focus, the defining moment came for Aldrich during adolescence. When models were brought into his art class, his
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NEW HORIZONS

While his forte is capturing the pristine beauty of the American West in all its diversity, lakes and streams highlighted by the melding of autumn into winter are often prevalent themes in Colorado-based painter David W. Mayer’s sparkling landscapes. By combining a refined sense of color with his ability to distill and synthesize these settings into their basic essence, Mayer captivates his collectors with canvases depicting the changing of the seasons in the Big Horn Valley of Wyoming, snowy pines cradling high lakes in Glacier National Park, and the fiery foliage lining Colorado’s South Platte River. David Mayer (Utah) Colorado
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