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Artist's Statement:
”I
have always been fascinated by the incredible diversity and often unearthly
beauty of western landscapes. I have crawled over the mountains and deserts
staking mining claims and prospecting for gold, silver and uranium. I have also
been a ski racer and a ski instructor and so I am enamored with both alpine and
desert landscapes in all seasons. Some of my earliest paintings were of lakes
and mountains, prospectors, cowboys and skiers (the latter, usually rendered in
electric colors). But when I first visited Moab, Canyonlands and Arches (in
Utah), I was truly smitten–artistic juices flowing! The geological marvels I
encountered there just blew me away! I could have been on another planet! While
my friends were wearing suits hunkered down in offices, I was lucky enough to
spend more than a decade prospecting and exploring in Utah, New Mexico, Arizona,
Nevada, Wyoming and Idaho.
I also
continued with my art, sketching and photographing as Al Dart and I trekked the
wild lands prospecting, drilling, staking claims and doing deals. Between forays
to our various properties I would return to my studio and paint. If I had a
thousand life times, I could never begin to paint even a fraction of the wonders
I have seen. I was so inspired that I even created and patented a new
user-interactive art form to try to capture some of what I experienced. Since
the early 1970's I have focused my art mostly on southwest red rock desert
landscapes. I have recently begun anew to paint other western landscapes as well
shifting my focus to more alpine vistas including those around the Jackson Hole
area.
I try
to paint a scene the way you remember it as opposed to the way it really
is. I want the viewer to be able to go into the scene and explore the various
spaces–to feel like he or she is actually there. I want the viewer to see
something new every time he or she looks at one of my paintings. The tight
detail in my work makes this possible. With looser more "painterly" work, the
viewer is stopped at the surface of the painting. I tend to paint "thin"– that is
to say I use very little paint, layering thin transparent colors on top of each
other to achieve the effect I am seeking. This approach lets the viewer look
into the paint. I plan on resuming my work in my new art form this year. More
on this in later…"
R. Geoffrey Blackburn
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