Outside Joliet

Outside Joliet

10x10

As I drove north into Montana, the mountains became more and more a part of the landscape. Snow covered their peaks, and you could tell these mountains are massive, muscular, tough. The ranges were not huge - Crazy Mountains in one direction, Pioneer Mountains in another, Tobacco Range in a third - so these were separate ranges, with different topography, different origins, probably different geography.

Even though they were far away, they began to surround the landscape, and it gave me the feeling of being very high up, very close to the sky. 

Joliet was a small, quiet town in southern Montana, the kind of place that makes you wonder what people do who live there. It was pleasant and a little old, and in the middle just spectacular scenery and incredible, clear light. 

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Above, the Absaroka Range. I wanted to go and see these mountains, and paint them, and one of my sponsors had suggested it, but storms were blowing in at the high elevations, and I just couldn't see my way clear to go. 

Here are more mountains, this time near Livingston, Montana. I painted these on my return trip.

I began to see the Yellowstone River, running alongside the highway. 

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Dog of the Day

This time, the DOD is a couple of chickens! And I'm very proud of this. One sponsors asked me to look for a painting of chickens, and I promised I would, but wondered if I'd really be able to locate a chicken or two out west. Lo and behold, chickens! The full photo is below.