final version of Wyoming Sundown

This is my final version of a painting that has been in the works for over a year. There were quite a few changes since I did the last posting. Simpler was better. I redid the haystack in the foreground taking out all the little stringy brushstrokes I had put in. I also did a glaze of blue over the mountains on the right and through the middle to bring them down a bit without losing the color too much. Glazing....now there's something I learned from studying Rembrandt. Speaking of Rembrandt....I just had four of my paintings chosen for an upcoming show at The Next Picture Show gallery in Dixon, Illinois. The show is called "Influences" and will feature four of my copies (forgeries, if you will). Well I am giving full credit to Rembrandt, Rubens, Thomas Moran and Frank Tenney Johnson --- they are the real masters. Anyhow, I am having three frames made at quite an expense, so I am hoping to sell at least one of the paintings. When I was an art student my instructor, Eugene Hall, told me to go do some copies. He was right, it helped me learn color and develop skills. E. Hall was a really great guy and probably would have like Wyoming Sundown...he was a westerner.

A couple more watercolors

Once upon a time in art school, heavily under the influence of Southwest Art and magazines of that ilk, I thought I would become a Western painter. To some extent I did that for a while when I was in an Oklahoma gallery. Anyhow, I happened to come across a book of Edward Curtis' photographs of American Indians. The one painting is actually of Edward Curtis, the other is from one of his Indian photos. These were black and white photos which I painted and added the color. I guess I'm guilty, like Ted Turner of colorizing black and white photos and films.