New Paintings of Snow Canyon and Sand Hollow Reservoir

Here are a couple of new paintings I completed recently. I thought I'd post them before heading off to California to teach a five-day watercolor workshop for the Santa Clara Valley Watercolor Society in San Jose.


Nellie and I took our tent to Snow Canyon recently and camped overnight. The stars were great, but the sunrise was even better. This painting is a result of that campout.


Sand Hollow Reservoir in southern Utah is one of my favorite bass fishing lakes (as you might have read in my last post.) But it also has spectacular scenery as well. This painting features the big skies that always present a perfect backdrop to the scene. Both these paintings are on display at the Mission Gallery in St. George.

Aquatic Research

Okay, every artist needs a break from the easel. I tell my students you've got to fill the bucket before you can empty it back in the studio. last night my brother in law Robert invited me and my son Jon to participate in a little "aquatic research" at Sand Hollow Reservoir. As you can see by the photo our efforts were effective. Of course we practice "Catch and release" so in order to show two fish at once, we had to catch two at the same time which we did. We call it "Doubles" and it only happens when all the stars are lined up correctly, the moon is right, and you are very good fishermen. Tah dah!

Santa Clara Invitational Art Show

The Santa Clara Art Invitational last weekend drew a nice crowd of art collectors for the fourth annual show. About 24 artists were present to display their art and join together for a Saturday paint-out and auction. My auction piece was purchased by collector Chuck Norton.



Inside the Town Hall art collectors could stroll through displays from the participating artists including both studio and plein air paintings. Also on display were a number of fine sculpture pieces.Participating artists included Julie Rogers, David Koch, Steve McGinty, Fred Howard, Robert Call, Roland Lee, Darwin Dower, L'Deane Trueblood, Annette Everett, Kaziah Hancock(The goat Lady), Elva Malin, Marty Ricks. Rett Ashby, Kelly Donovan, Charles Dayton, Kieth Bond, J. Kirk Richards, Simon Winegar, Jeffery Pugh, Steven Lee Adams, Ken Harris, Joni Flint, Paul Graf, Matt Rogers, Robert McFarland, Richard Horrocks, and McGarren Flack.

I got a kick out of this "ladder-easel" setup that Marty Ricks was using. He said it worked better than his $500 easel which kept breaking. He also thought the step shelves were a nice feature, allowing plenty of room for storing equipment and drinks.


During the day collectors could bid on their favorite artworks in a silent auction. At the end of the day there was a scramble to get the last bid down.

Camping and Sketching in Snow Canyon

We awoke to this glorious view of the sunrise on Snow Canyon's cliffs

A couple of days ago Nellie and I decided to do some tent camping in Snow Canyon. The weather was perfect -- sunny with cool air. We took delightful evening hike on the "Hidden Pinion Trail" and enjoyed a grand night under the Utah stars. We awoke to a glorious sunrise and I was able to do a little drawing in my travel sketchbook. Ahhh the joys of living in paradise!

St. George Art Festival Re-cap

Thanks to everyone who stopped by and visited my display at the St. George Art Festival last weekend. The weather was magnificent -- almost too hot, and the crowds were bigger than ever. We had lots of sales including originals, books, cards, and prints. I was honored by The City of St. George who purchased my painting "Springdale Morning" for the permanent collection of the St. George Art Museum. Having done a lot of outdoor art festivals in my time, I am quite sure this is the best festival of its kind. Kudos to Kent Perkins, his staff, and everyone involved for an amazing festival.


The City of St. George purchased "Springdale Morning" for the permanent collection

St. George Art Festival this weekend

I'll have a double booth at the St. George outdoor Art Festival Friday and Saturday April 21-22 and I hope to see YOU! Over 120 artists will be on hand at the Town Square so there will be plenty to see. For the family there is entertainment, kids' art area, food booths and more. I'll be displaying a couple of new giclee prints along with about 15 new original paintings. The weather forecast is sunny. See you there.

Painting Water in Watercolor Workshop

We just finished two wonderful days studying the ins and outs of painting water in watercolor. 15 excellent artists joined me for a two-day workshop sponsored by Warren and Carol Larson and the Hurricane Valley Arts Alliance. It's always a great experience to rub shoulders with fellow artists, but this group was especially talented and amiable. Participants included: John and Karel Armstrong from Prescott Arizona; Mark Gunn Rose from American Falls Idaho; Laura Huddleston from Snowflake Arizona; Barbara Malmberg from Riverside California; Johanna Monroe from Santa Rosa California; Pete Sauer from Salt Lake City Utah; Ann Williams from Springdale Utah; Michael Smith from Ivins Utah; Bill Sherwin from St. George Utah; John Mangels from St. George Utah; Shirlee Last from Hurricane Utah; John Griffith from Washington Utah;Daniel Fernie from St. George Utah; Eiko Anderson from Logan Utah. Click to see photos

New Roland Lee Gallery opens at Zion Mtn Ranch

Yep, we're officially open. We finally launched the new Roland Lee Art Gallery at Zion Mountain Ranch. Located inside the ZMR Trading Post just a mile from the east entrance to Zion National Park on SR9 we've partnered with Kevin McLaws to exhibit my original landscape paintings and prints of Zion and the surrounding areas. Our signs aren't up yet and we've got a few finishing touches to add, but we'll be in full swing in time for the busy vacation season. We'll also display and sell the amazing western bronze sculptures of Jerry Anderson. I hope to spend time up their this summer. Look forward to an open house celebration soon.

Zion Mountain Ranch resort is unique in that it is dedicated to preserving the pristine natural surroundings of its thousands of acres of high mountain meadows and forests that border Zion Park. Part of the preservation effort is to make a permanent home for the ranch’s buffalo herd.

Zion Painting on cover of SkyWest inflight magazine

I was pleased to have one of my Zion paintings grace the cover of the March/April 2011 issue of SkyWest, the inflight magazine of SkyWest and Delta Express airlines. They used my painting "A Patch of Blue" which depicts a peaceful scene along the north fork of the Virgin River in Zion National Park. They also quoted me in a travel article and I was featured in a sidebar.

College Art Tour of California Museums

The blossoms were in bloom at the Huntington Gardens

Nellie and I were fortunate to be invited to accompany a Dixie State College bus tour to California this week. It always charges up the juices to see fantastic art pieces up close and share the experience with other art appreciators. We visited the Getty museum, LA Art Museum, Getty Villa in Malibu, The Norton Simon museum in Pasadena, The Huntington Library and Gardens, and had a little time for the beach. My overall favorite place is the new Getty Art Museum in Los Angeles. The edifice itself and gardens are stunning by themselves. I always spend the first hour outside just enjoying the sheer design magnificence of the architecture and water feature. From every angle it is a design wonder, juxtaposing hard edges with amorphic natural shapes, with emphasis on the element of texture. And of course the art inside is fabulous indeed.

The recently completed Chinese Garden at the Huntington


Seeing the original artwork up-close is really a treat. Nellie rests her feet while some pretty famous paintings keep an eye on her.



I loved the striking contrast of hard edges and soft graceful curves at the Getty Museum in Los Angeles




The Roman gardens at the Getty Villa in Malibu

My long-time friend and art professor at Dixie State College, Glen Blakely, has introduced thousands of students and community people to the world of art, through his guided trips to Europe, Los Angeles and San Francisco museums.