Ranch Subject

Watercolor Painting by Dennis Pendleton. Steamboat Springs was a ranching and mining town before it was a ski town. Some of the ranches remain in the yampa Valley and they add a distinctive western charm. I love painting on the ranches because they are full of subject matter like this painting. The old weathered barns, wagon wheels, ranch equipment, and the original homestead cabins with the rocky mountains as a backdrop are enough to keep an artist busy for a lifetime.

This was in the late fall when there was a light dusting of snow on the ground and the aspen trees were still showing gold. I was intent on capturing the strong mountain sunlight with the interesting shadows and cast shadows full of color. Rather than a single focal point, I liked the way the blue chair, blue window, and blue bucket formed an interesting triangle where the viewers eye could stop at any of the three points. I further emphasized this by the way I cropped the barn and fence with three of the borders.

Starting with a light cerulean blue for the sky, I then added the aspen trees with lemon and transparent yellow. The snow on the hill is mostly unpainted white paper and the snow in the foreground is gray mixed with brilliant orange and cerulean blue. Breaking up through the foreground snow are bits of yellow ochre and burnt sienna. Gray mixed with cerulean blue and brilliant orange was used for the metal gate and boards and the fence post is burnt sienna and French ultramarine blue. The barn wood is different combinations of burnt sienna, burnt umber, French ultramarine blue, and yellow ochre. Cerulean blue, indigo, and French ultramarine blue were used for the window panes and the chair and pail were painted with cerulean blue. Finally the red case next to the blue pail was painted with Indian red.

I will be teaching a three day plein air watercolor workshop in Steamboat Springs on July 25, 26, and 27 and I would love to have you join us. For more information contact the Steamboat Art Museum and talk to Dottie Zabel. If you have any questions send me an email to pendletonstudio@gmail.com. Happy Painting! Dennis Pendleton