If you look at the cover of this catalogue and the images throughout, you will see the culmination of many years of painting. Look deeper into the layers of paint forming the images in the show and you begin to see thoughts woven together, idea by idea, until an image appears. Or, start with the image and work backwards. Look at the grass, the water, the mountains and skies and you begin to see transparent glazes, scumbling and impasto - abstract forms from which the symbols of realism emerge. A good example is the grass in the foreground of "Upper Yellowstone Valley". I have not rendered a single blade of grass. The "idea" of grass is made up of glazing pure color over white with intermediate opaque colors above that, all highlighted with heavy impasto. The syncopation of shapes throughout the painting tames nature's chaos, adding to the rhythm and repetition that ultimately achieves harmony. One wrong note and the unity of the whole is ruined. Follow the silhouette of a tree and you will find an arrangement of musical notes. Soft and hard edges, loud or muted colors all correspond to the articulation of thoughts and ideas which translate into emotion and discovery.

   Through the whole process of painting, the artist suspends in time a fleeting moment that allows our senses to be played repeatedly. Our lives become richer and more meaningful through our visual senses.

   Let me give you an example of an experience that comes and goes and, like a favorite song, I never grow tired of reliving. When I was growing up in the area of northern Montana called The Hi-Line, I cherished my walks out into the untilled pastures and coulees where the natural prairie still exists. I marveled at the mosaic of color and textures of the glaciated rocks, grasses and forbs unfurling beneath my feet. The constant wind transmitted scents of prairie biomass sweetened by the pure, cool morning air - smells that linger a lifetime. Sparrows flitting across my path and the drama of a drifting cloud evoked the union of earth and sky. Thunderheads began to form against the distant enchantment of viridian softly caressing the purple horizon. Sometimes I would lie on my back, turning my head to the side, following the cobalt trails darkening in hue, changing to ultramarine. As I looked straight up, with the cool earth pressing into my back and the warmth of divine light on my face, I saw the shimmering deep blue, purple infinity. The mystery and vastness overwhelmed me. I am still working on this painting.

Clyde Aspevig
(Excerpt from 2004 Catalogue)

"One touch of nature makes the whole world kin."
William Shakespeare

Juniper Ridge Studios, Montana