Escalante Valley - Colored Pencil Drawing

"Escalante Valley - Colored Pencil Drawing"

The Escalante Valley in Utah is a lonely arroyo hewn by a serpentine river that in the late fall can be easily forded in order to gain access to a labyrinth of arches, grottos and hidden glades. Unfamiliar with such a preternatural territory, it is a strange and mystical wilderness.

Rising from a field of fiery grasses, the ancient rock formations tower above the desert floor, carving out a rugged skyline. The primordial beauty is enhanced by an explosion of autumn hues that can only be expressed with color from across the entire palette.

The reddish buttes are sculpted from a progression of steep tiers and scarred by vertical striations. While defining the extraordinary shapes, the distinct shadows stay warm except for the deepest that trend towards purple.

The desert ramparts are an exceptionally rugged borderland concealing the remote river chasm. Running along the base of the sheer walls, raw galleries preserve magnificent petroglyphs that have been etched into the dark varnish.

From within this special place, it’s exciting to stumble upon such fantastic works of primitive art. Striking depictions of the natural world include humans, bighorn sheep and rattlesnakes while Fever Dreams are represented in wildly abstract compositions.

The arid mesa is laced with a surprising amount of ornate greenery that clings to the cliffs’ narrow ledges. Scattered across the stair-stepped terrain, the verdant brush displays a variety of shades that gradate from dark blue to bright yellow.

Separating the spires from the meadow is a band of silvery-blue sage that stretches horizontally across the vista. The plain of burnt grasses is criss-crossed with flecks of ochre and orange, betraying the inevitable transition of seasons.

A heavy clump of bushes weighs down the scenery as color from throughout is carried down into the compact, little niche. Wiry, black branches diverge out of the sandy earth, creating a dark silhouette that contrasts starkly with the rest of the sun-baked land.

The sky is a patchwork of cool tones that have been blended softly together while complementing the crimson-colored terrain below. The early morning’s lethargic haze has been shattered into wispy fragments whose broken edges disintegrate into the firmament.

The monumental plateau is truly a grand staircase that combines a sacred cultural history with spiritual scenery. Maybe it’s the forbidding temperament of this imposing landscape that beguiles you to keep pushing even farther into the unknown.