Wednesday, June 13, 2012

Afternoon on the Ranch

Afternoon on the Ranch
6" x 8"  Oil
$100.00 + $10. s/h
SOLD

I recently attended a four day Artists Gathering Invitational at the Medano Zapata Ranch in southern Colorado.  The ranch is owned by the Nature Conservancy and managed by the Phillips family who also manage a ranch near Colorado Springs.  It's a 103,000 acre bison and guest ranch bordering Great Sand Dunes National Park.  The area is ecologically diverse with high desert grasslands, forest, wetlands, sand dunes, creeks and lush meadows and scrub.  Each year a group of Colorado artists are invited to photograph and paint on the ranch.  This exposure allows us a way to teach about the Nature Conservancy ranch.  There will be three shows this fall and winter featuring work done as a result of the experience.  I was thrilled to be invited and to learn about ranch life first hand.  I painted this piece right outside of our guest house.


I think I shot this one in the middle of the day, the light is pretty flat.  But you get the idea of the vastness of the ranch.  Part of the Sand Dunes National Park can be seen in the background.

Many ranches in Colorado have large cottonwood trees around the houses and old homesteads.  These
 trees love water and grow well near streams.  They're a necessity as it is hot and dry here!

Home, home on the range.  You can see a few of the bison herd on the range.  The
 ranch manages a herd of 2,500 bison.

This is Gordon, an orphaned bison baby.  He was found in a ditch and is temporarily 
being kept in the stables where he's hand fed.  When he can take care of himself he'll
 be kept in a pasture with other orphaned bison and be enjoyed by ranch guests.  
Ie:  they'll be able to see bison up close.

11 comments:

Debbi Smith Rourke said...

What a special trip!! Know you were so pleased to be invited and your painting is fabulous!!! Love the hues.
And sweet Gordon - thanks for sharing his story. Happy summer!

hmuxo said...

Beautiful post and the painting is gorgeous..love the blues!!!

Celeste Bergin said...

great photos...excellent painting

Autumn Leaves said...

What a gorgeous afternoon it was! I just love the blues and purples in your piece, Pam. That baby is gorgeous too. I feel bad that he is without his mom.

martinealison said...

J'aime les bleus bien nuancés dans votre peinture... Quel lieu superbe et j'aime particulièrement votre toute dernière photo de ce petit bison orphelin...
Gros bisous à vous

Pam Holnback said...

Debbi, thank you! Yes, I was thrilled to be invited!

Thank you Hilda. The blues are a little more violet in the painting. Maybe I should re-photo.

Celeste, Thanks so much.

Thank you Sherry. I felt badly for Gordon also. Don't know if the mom dies or abandoned him. Either way, he's safe now.

Merci Martine. J'aime aussi le orphelin.

Theresa Paden said...

Afternoon on the Ranch is so beautiful and I LOVE the colors! Thank you for telling us all about the ranch and for sharing the photo of Gordon, he is so adorable. Glad he will be taken such good care of :)

Nancy B. Hartley said...

Beautiful painting, and congrats on being selected for this special ranch visit! Lov3ely story!

Pam Holnback said...

Thank you CathyAnn. Maybe you can stop at the Park on one of your trips out here. It's not too far out of your way.

Theresa. Thanks so much. I'm also glad that he was adopted. While observing the bison, I saw a coyote following the herd.

Nancy. It was an incredible outing. Thank you.

Ken Mirr said...

There is no doubt that afternoon pictures would look great. The radiant sun and the depth of the ranch played a big part in making it beautiful. You did a great job with your painting as well. You are truly artist by blood, yes? Anyway, was this ranch exclusive for bison only?

Darren Lanphere

Unknown said...

The vast land and cloudy blue sky make such a wonderful sight. Ranches like this should be preserved and taken care of. There’s nothing more breathtaking than the beauty of nature. Plus, they provide habitat and shelter for animals.

- Rodger Ciliberto