Frequent Question

June 2025

I’ve been asked if I paint specific mountains or places. The answer is, typically no. Rarely do I paint from reference photos. I love earth science and how mountains are formed, composed of different rocks, and each have their own shape and form. I have tried to capture a place in a painting and it just doesn’t work. So I paint from my memories, feelings, and imitate the mountain’s shape. For imitation is all we really can attempt.

Although, as I apply paint and choose colors, forms or movements sometimes spark a memory. I may be reminded of a road trip, Sunday drive, or a camping trip. There have been times I may not identify the location, or make the connection, until after the painting is complete, sometimes years later. For example, below are two pictures. On the left, it’s a snapshot from a b-day camping trip to Big Bend National Park and years later I made the painting, on the right. When trying to determine the title, the light blue area between the red forms on either side reminded me of the canyon walls of Santa Elena.

This got me thinking about what other mountains, canyons, and formations I could identify in other paintings. Less than a dozen came to mind. Below are some examples accompanied with photographs I took.

These paintings were painted by memory and made the connection to the specific place after completion.

A little closer to my home in Albuquerque is “View from Coyote”, 2019. This is a view of the Sandia Mountains from Tijeras, NM. I do recall this view was in my mind’s eye when I started painting and wanted to capture the massive green area that looks like the backside of a wave cresting.

Most of the mountain shapes are made up in my mind’s eye from the many trips over the years. It’s interesting that there have been times when I can name the location (or inspiration spot) after the fact, and 99% of the time have a photograph from the archives!

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