This year I've devoted myself to the painting of Western things. I was raised in California, spent much of my adult life in Arizona and now reside in Washington. I've been the owner of up to 25 horses on a ranch in Northern Az, raised sheep, herded cattle, and spent a lot of time at rodeos. I love the West, the dry deserts, the starlit open skies, and the endless vast of the horizon. The Pacific Northwest is equally as beautiful with its mountains, many lakes and shorelines. I recall the old western song, "Give me land, lots of land 'neath the starry skies above....don't fence me in," and can't help think that we've come a long ways from the times of real freedom. As hard as times were for people, the quiet of the land, the beauty of a clear pristene lake, the freshness of pure air, may have been worth the hardships.
In these paintings I want to grab hold of a little of that time and space which may, in secret moments, still be available to us.
