Impression Evergreen

Petroglyphs near Moab, Utah Near the town of Moab, Utah if you keep your eyes open, you might see rock art carved by Native Americans hundreds of years ago. The most conspicuous sites are where the symbols are carved out of dark rock panels revealing light-colored graphics. As opposed to painted Pictographs, Petroglyphs are scratched or incised into the brown, desert varnish. The abstract images are exceptionally concise but that simplicity is what evokes such a powerfully honest expression. The meaning behind these mesmerizing works is not exactly known but the artists who created them must have been revered for their magical powers. It is an extraordinary thing to be in the desert hiking through a remote arroyo and stumble upon an ancient gallery of remarkable artwork. Rock art Symbols carved out of dark rock Scratched into the desert varnish Mesmerizing works Light-colored graphics Abstract images An extraordinary thing Exceptionally concise An honest expression Remarkable artwork

"Animas Forks" Colored Pencil It’s a warm, summer evening in the San Juan Mountains near Silverton, Colorado where the Animas Forks River is born above the tree line. The turquoise torrent cascades down through a rock-hewn canyon of purple cliffs and into a spectacular basin entombed by towering peaks. A few rows of dark trees are scattered diagonally across the wide open tundra. A sulphur sun streams golden rays through a verdant sky, bathing the surreal scene in ethereal light. The color choice is influenced by the high altitude where the blazing orb sears through thin air, tinging the atmosphere with sulphur which gives the sky its green cast. Notice how swirls of this emerald color are reflected in the river current below. Flush with the optimism that comes from fine weather, the bright highlights sparkle with intensity. Notice how the same colors are being used in different areas of the drawing. Carrying common pigment into multiple places across the surface i

"Shining Mountains" Colored Pencil It’s late fall as first light seeps across the Great Divide and floods into the Blue River Valley, illuminating a celestial kingdom. Rising out of this divine realm, the Shining Mountains sparkle like jewels and their jagged profile serrates a docile sky. The ethereal incandescence reveals a royal tapestry of woven colors that conveys a spiritual loftiness unique to one of Colorado’s most pristine wilderness areas. The golden peaks are modeled by a jigsaw of sharp-edged shadows of the purest violet-blue. In the field, a barren aspen grove and a few dark trees are scattered remnants of autumn’s last breath. The bronze meadow sits somberly below snow-dusted summits that glimmer with multi-facets of hope. This merciful period of reflection offers precious time to prepare for the difficulties that lay ahead. The melancholy season’s cold air blows with indifference forcing the high country inhabitants to respond with unyielding perseve

"Butterflies" Colored Pencil “Through art we can change the world.” ~ #twitterartexhibit It’s an incredible morning in September as a profusion of painted lady butterflies migrate leisurely through the Front Range Foothills. Their fluttering course seems to be at the mercy of a fickle breeze that blows down from the snow-covered divide. During the fall, the mountain landscape is ablaze in fiery color and the sudden arrival of so many butterflies stirs even more spicy tones into the mix. Out of the thousands passing through, a pair has paused to pollinate on a purple, Scotch thistle. Intentionally constructed to be a little bit larger than life, this close-cropped composition lends the scene its dramatic sense of immediacy. The tiny niche in nature’s garden is an enlarged, abstract arrangement of hard-edged shapes and saturated color. The pure pigment is brightened by the black outlines that encompass the separate sections much like a stained-glass window. A deep

"In the Forest, Bear Creek" Colored Pencil It is late summer in the Colorado foothills and Bear Creek is flowing steadily through a narrow, forest-filled canyon. The pastoral scene is a study in contrast involving shapes, edges, values and color. The forest interior is one of the most alluring places on earth providing asylum from the cold steel, glass and pavement found in the city. Life slows down along the creek where earth, trees, water and air create a comforting atmosphere. The flickering landscape makes a gradual transition towards abstraction as the indistinct edges of the riverbank melt into the rushing water. The calm ambiance is disrupted by an explosion of streaming light that shatters into small shards of pure color. It is a natural patchwork of opposing pigments where a warm highlight streaks across the creek’s cool surface. The rock cliff’s sharp angles convey action and dynamic movement that spreads across the unusual drawing. A murky silhouette o

"Loveland Pass Lakes" Colored Pencil "Nothing is less real than realism. Details are confusing. It is only by selection, by elimination, by emphasis, that we get at the real meaning of things." ~ Georgia O'Keeffe Situated above timberline, a pair of high mountain tarns are pure blue under a late-summer sun. Known as Loveland Pass Lakes, the shimmering jewels are set just below the Continental Divide. Looming majestically in the background, a ring of rugged peaks encloses the isolated valley. Dark patches of far away forest cling to the steep mountainside and fade away as they reach ever higher. The rolling hills of rough terrain around the reservoirs are covered with rows of pine that follow closely the contour of the land. The water is calm, clear and cold with the larger lake reflecting trees in its upper left corner. Sweeping across the foreground, tundra grasses are ablaze in fiery colors. Conveying the sure sign that seasons are changing, an as