“Painters of Utah’s Canyons and Deserts”

"Painters of Utah's Canyons and Deserts" - By Donna L. Poulton and Vern G. Swanson - Gibbs Smith Publishing

-- Jacket Cover: Edgar Payne, "Red Mesa, Monument Valley, Utah" Credit: Painters of Utah’s Canyons and Deserts

Famous movie director John Ford once exclaimed, “…Monument Valley was my greatest star.” 

--James Swinnerton, “Desert Clouds”  Credit: Painters of Utah’s Canyons and Deserts

But long before Ford lionized these great icons of the southwest, paintings of the sweeping desert and colorful canyon country of Utah’s plateau province had captured the popular imagination of American and European audiences.

--Salomon Nunes Carvalho, “Natural Obelisks” Credit: Painters of Utah’s Canyons and Deserts

--Thomas Moran in Zion Credit: Painters of Utah’s Canyons and Deserts

Vividly illustrated and exhaustively researched, “Painters of Utah’s Canyons and Deserts” is the first comprehensive history of the artists who painted Utah’s Red Rock with more than 300 paintings spanning 155 years of art.

--David Meikle “View of Zion Canyon” Credit: Painters of Utah’s Canyons and Deserts

--Clay Wagstaff “Late October Evening” Credit: Painters of Utah’s Canyons and Deserts

The book explores the contrasts between painters who called Utah home and those who explored and visited.  The book looks at lively anecdotes of the “artist as explorer,” including John Wesley Powell’s harrowing trip down the Colorado River, artist Solomon Nunes Carvalho’s recovery from the brink of starvation, and Richard Kern’s death at the hands of the Paiutes.

--David Meikle “Mount Carmel Afternoon” Credit: Painters of Utah’s Canyons and Deserts

--Edie Roberson “Annie’s Trip to Southern Utah” Credit: Painters of Utah’s Canyons and Deserts

Love of the western landscape has to do with the capacity of the viewer to experience vast space.  To appreciate the desert terrain, one has to be comfortable with an inscrutable universe.  Whether existential or spiritual, these themes are evoked in the modern paintings of Ed Mell, Conrad Buff, Maynard Dixon, Gary E. Smith and many others.

--Ed Mell “Canyon Light and Rain” Credit: Painters of Utah’s Canyons and Deserts

--Gary E. Smith “Canyon Dweller” Credit: Painters of Utah’s Canyons and Deserts

Cars, Stars and Guitars

By Donna Poulton

For Arizona-based artist, Dave Newman, the highways of the West are a treasure trove of highway culture memorabilia.  His collage work is heavily influenced by the vernacular images of the West: signs, buildings, the open road, music and advertisements. 

“Surreal Utah” Credit: Dave Newman

Fender Guitars, Warner Brother Records and High West Distillery are just a few of the clients who have commissioned Dave Newman’s collage work.

Working on a commission for Ajo als Restaurant Credit: Dave Newman

Dave’s artistic process begins with a drive down a local highway or a blacktop road trip, a visit to a flea market or a country antiques store, to find objects and photo opportunities that may spark an idea for his next big project.

“Bronco” Credit: Dave Newman 

Newman notes: “along with whatever items I may have discovered in my travels, my painted collage constructions are made up of my own photographs, postcards and maps from my collection, with acrylic paint and found wood and metal items added.”

“Motels” Credit: Dave Newman

The desert landscape, “Kitchy” roadside attractions, and what used to be called motor courts are rapidly disappearing in America, he says. 

“Regular” Credit: Dave Newman

Mixing media is Newmans’s way of trying to “preserve the locations, imagery, and essence for people who remember these things, as well as serving as a kind of historical marker for those too young to have had the opportunity to experience the era.”

“Garage, Café and Motel” Credit: Dave Newman

At first glance, his collage work seems fragmented, as though disparate pieces are placed randomly on a panel. But as the viewer looks more closely, the elements become a topography of our collective memory of the western landscape. 

Neon Cemetery and Dave Newman: Credit Dave Newman

Dave’s work can be found in many private collections and in his new exhibition.

“Cars, Stars and Guitars,” opens at the Meyer Gallery in Park City, Utah in the 5^th of August.

"Desert Tour" Credit: Dave Newman

Credit: Phoenix Home and Garden with a Dave Newman collage

LeConte Stewart: Depression Era Art

LeConte Stewart: Depression Era Art

at the Utah Museum of Fine Arts, Salt Lake City, Utah - 21 July 2011 through 15 January 2012

By Donna Poulton

Best known for the Red Rock splendors of Monument Valley and of Zion and Bryce Canyons, southern Utah has long attracted artists from around the world.

LeConte Stewart, “Postmaster General” Credit: Church History Museum 

Although LeConte Stewart (1891-1990) grew up near these iconic sites, it was actually Utah’s small towns, farms, and urban landscapes that captured his imagination from a very young age.

LeCone Stewart, “House by the Railroad” Credit: Private Collector

In a career spanning more than 75 years, Stewart created images of Utah that are simultaneously epic and intimate. He was talented at etching, lithography, and lettering, yet it is his oil paintings that have garnered the widest recognition among both collectors and museum visitors.

LeConte Stewart, “Private Car” Credit: Church History Museum

Looking back, Stewart noted that three themes dominated his landscape paintings of Utah. The first was the desert: like most Westerners, he was attracted to sage-covered plateaus and hills — scenes of endless expanse.

LeConte Stewart, “Cannery” Credit: Private Collection

LeConte Stewart, “The Victorian” Credit: Utah Museum of Fine Arts

The second theme was the scenic region that hugs the foothills of the Wasatch Mountains: wide meadows with cottonwood trees and Lombardy poplars are punctuated with such humanizing elements as barns, corrals, farmhouses, and winding lanes.

LeConte Stewart, “Home Loan” Credit: Jan and Paul Doxey 

The third theme emerged during the 15-year period when Stewart explored the effects of the Great Depression — urban and rural landscapes of trains, stores, factories, homes, and men at work in the fields.

LeConte Stewart, “Toe Hold” Credit: Springville Museum of Art

This is the largest collection of LeConte Stewart’s extraordinary work ever exhibited.  Not to be missed.

LeConte Stewart, “The Smith’s” Credit: Utah Museum of Fine Arts

LeConte Stewart, “Untitled” Credit: Private Collection

LeConte Stewart, “Death Curve” Credit: Private Collection

LeConte Stewart, “Finale” Credit: Catherine and Gibbs Smith