Walk you through the night ...

One of my favorite singer/songwriters, Cherie Call, wrote a touching little song wherein she talks to her newborn son promising to hold him tight and walk him through the night. It is definitely a favorite of ours.
As Mary pondered all that she alone knew about her newborn son, she no doubt had similar feelings of love and commitment. As Cherie sings, "Rest your head now while I hold you tight, and I will walk you through the night".
The good news that the angel brought so many years ago was that unto us (you and me), a Savior (not just any baby) was born. I like to think that He "will walk us through the night" of our mortal lives. Thank you, Cherie, for penning such a meaningful and touching song.

Mia

This is the shepherd of some of our dearest friends ... her name is Mia. I felt impressed to do this painting of her for them as a token of our friendship and admiration.

Mischief

 Each morning lately when we pass this storm drain inlet on our way up the mountain for our daily hike, my dog gets very excited and literally wants to climb down into this drain. I knew some critter was using it but was not sure which one.

The other night, on my way home from an evening appointment, I saw a family of raccoons darting into this very inlet, one after another. Mystery solved! Just had to come home and paint them!

Moosen

We love to see moose in the wild. They are majestic animals with know fear of humans. We gave this cow and calf "wide birth" when we saw them up in Alaska years ago. I finally got around to painting them.

Romantic Sunset

I have always loved to paint sunsets, and sunsets on a secluded romantic beach, well, they just don't get any better than that! Here is another in my Hawaiian body of work.

Silver Lake

This is a beautiful little setting high atop American Fork canyon in the Wasatch Mountain range of northern Utah. It is not far from our home, yet its Alpine beauty whispers remoteness and seclusion. We took our family on a hike there several years ago ... very beautiful indeed!

Wisdom

Owls have been a symbol of wisdom from ancient times. They are interesting creatures to be sure. We have a resident great grey owl that lives in our neighborhood, and it has been fun to see it in action and just sitting high on its perch.

Stealth

Great Grey owls are among the most interesting birds of prey. Their majestic size, quiet stealth and unequaled hunting skills make them a very special bird of prey.

Hangin' Out

The resident flock of eagles at Pybus Point was enormous. When they roost at night, they seem to all want to be on the same branch of the roosting tree. These characters put on a show for us every day ... flying around, fishing, grooming or just hangin' out!

Pybus Point Dock

This is the busiest place on the property ... people coming and going, by boat and by plane; fish are processed, frozen and boxed. This is the view of the dock from the main lodge above. We sure loved our time up there.

Pybus Point Lodge

I recently returned from the beautiful Pybus Point Lodge in southeast Alaska. The remote location and the drop-dead gorgeous backdrop of the property make it one of the most beautiful places I have had the privilege of visiting. During our non-fishing down time, I was able to paint four scenes of our trip. This one is of the lodge looking from the easterly side of the property back toward the lodge and dock which I finished while there. I blocked in the under paintings of the other three up there and am finishing them now back home in my studio. I will post them when they are complete. Enjoy ...

Decisions Determine Destiny 2017

Several years ago, I painted a similar scene recalling an experience I had while hiking with my dad as a young boy in the Uintah Mountains of Utah. We took a wrong fork in the trail and did not make it to our intended destination. We had to retrace our path and choose the correct fork which took us right to the lake we were expecting. So it is in life ... the decisions we make will ultimately determine our destiny and our happiness.

Stellar

This is another painting in my body of work called, "Backyard birds". These Stellar Jays live in the foothills above our home and often visit our yard. They are both beautiful and bold.

Creek Street

Ketchikan, Alaska is one of my favorite places to visit ... great scenery, wonderful fishing, and unique places to see. One of these unique places is the old, "Creek Street". It is very quaint and picturesque. I just had to paint it!

Aloha

Tropical sunsets are unique ... the color palette as well as the stunning scenery. Just had to paint this one!

Poly

One of my young friends is a member of a Polynesian dancing group, so I used her as a model for this tropical sunset painting.

Primary puddles

Years ago, while visiting my wife's cousin in Vancouver, Canada, we hiked to a small waterfall just after a rainstorm. The forest light was misty and puddles littered the path. I had not brought along any painting materials so we went into town to purchase some. I was able to buy red, yellow and blue paint along with tube of white. We also purchased a couple of brushes and a canvas. I painted the pathway scene the best I could and left it with them as a thank you for their hospitality.

A couple of months ago, I wanted to teach my students to use only primary colors on their next painting. I remembered our Vancouver experience so I suggested that we use that scene as reference material. This is my version of that painting lesson.

Missy's Arch

Maureen and her friend, Missy (from California) visited southern Utah last Fall. While there, they spent some time in the Bryce Canyon area. Maureen asked me to paint this scene of an arch overlooking the valley beyond. So fun to learn how to paint the beautiful red rock scenes of our state!

Torre

One of my work associates owns an ancient "villa" with a tower just outside of Rome on the Italian countryside. He sent me a photo from the tower window overlooking the vineyards and olive groves below with an invitation to pop over there for a stay. Well, we haven't been able to get there yet, but I just had to paint this scene for him using his photo as reference!

Ariya and Trin

I started this painting about 5 years ago and then set it aside for some reason after underpainting the scene. It got inadvertently tucked away and forgotten somehow. The other day, I came across it while rearranging my studio and decided that I just needed to finish it. The scene captures a tender moment with our two granddaughters while chilling one morning on the dock near our cabin at the Red Canyon Lodge (Flaming Gorge Rec Area). Fun times with Ariya and Trin

Mother Goose

A few years ago, we were able to visit Yellowstone in May. On our way up there we stopped in Idaho Falls and while there we saw many Canadian geese with goslings everywhere. I painted one scene of a mother goose and her chick when we got home, but have always wanted to paint this one ... I finally got around to it! Enjoy!

Nighthawk

This is a little study painting I did with Jerry Yarnell this month. Fun to learn new techniques.

Rashka

Mother wolf and pup ... truly a magnificent and tender moment. I tried to portray the peaceful, playful and tender relationship between mother wolf and her pup

In Flight

Our little beagle puppy has grown into a beautiful adult dog. Her soulful eyes and big, floppy ears make her hard to say "no" to. When she leaps while running she almost appears to be "in flight" ... which I tried to capture in this piece.

Susquehanna

Nearly 190 years ago, the Aaronic Priesthood was restored near this spot on the Susquehanna River to Joseph Smith and Oliver Cowdrey by John the Baptist, a then resurrected being. The world has been forever changed because of this wonderful and merciful act of restoration by Heavenly Father.

Frosty

Over a decade ago, I painted a similar scene of my little granddaughter building a snowman with our buddy beagle as inspector. Last month, my painting class wanted to learn how to paint such a scene, so we used my original painting as reference and came up with this scene. We love snowmen in our family!

Easton's light

In honor of my grandson's upcoming baptism, I painted this for him as a gift to remember such a sacred event. It depicts him letting, "his light so shine before men that they may see [his] good works and glorify [His] Father who is in Heaven".

The Big Hole on Crow Creek

This Spring marks the 80th anniversary of my dad's baptism up in Star Valley. Since they did not have a formal baptismal font back then, they traditionally used the "big hole" on Crow Creek for such ordinances. Dad recalls that even though it was late Spring, the edges of the water still had a little ice ... brrrr! Though everything has changed up there now, I tried to recreate the place and atmosphere of how it might have been back then, using only dad's description and memories.