Nathan Forbush, a former student, entered Kanab's guerrilla film-making competition, Little Hollywood Shootout.  He asked if I would score his film.  Nate only had a few days to make his video, and I only had a few hours.  Nate won 1st place in his category!  ​

You're all invited to the 27th Sears Dixie Invitational.  The reception and other events will take place February 14th.  For more information go to http://dixieculturalarts.com/sears-museum/

I submitted a couple paintings of the Grand Canyon from the valley floor.  I collected reference materials for these paintings while on an unforgettable 14 day trip from Lee's Ferry to Diamond Creek.  I "swamped" (boat crew) for my friends Jen Reid and Matt Strong.  I can't thank them enough for allowing me to go along with them.  It was the trip of a lifetime!

Value does the work. Color gets the credit.

Dixie College puts on a really good show every year in February, especially if you like paintings of the Southern Utah region.  This years show will take place in mid February.  For more information go to: http://dixieculturalarts.com/sears-museum/

This year's painting is pretty big measuring 3x4 ft.  I used reference material collected from the river level of the Grand Canyon.  The specific site in this composition is looking East from the Patio at Deer Creek.  Deer Creek is near "the Source", a sacred place for the Paiute.  They believe they came from this location and will return when they die. 

2015 Amazing Earthfest, Kanab, UT from Joshua Baird on Vimeo.

My friend Laurel Anderson and I made these videos to promote a local festival of arts, culture and landscape.  I learned a ton about production, interviewing, editing and so much more.  I love working with Laurel, she's always the consummate professional.  Another friend and talented musician, Arvel Bird, allowed us to use his music for these videos free of charge.

Arvel's website: arvelbird.com

Thanks for coming out to the show.  If you weren't able to make it; the watercolors will be at the Village at Best Friends Animal Society for 6 weeks.  Or you can look at many of them here on the website.  

Below is the artist statement for the show:

I grew up in Utah where the Rocky Mountains, Great Basin and Colorado Plateau intersect forming some of Earth's most sublime landscapes.  Though you can move away from such a place, you can never part with it.

My love of the Inter-Mountain West--its mystery and beauty, its expansive arid vistas and curious geologic formations--are the inspiration behind my artwork.  Sometimes I paint it representationally, but as of late I am drawn to interpreting the landscape on a more abstract and universal level.

To abstract means to "separate" or "draw away from".  I leave out specific locations and land formations, but maintain the sensory elements of nature: ambient light, texture, immensity of space, atmosphere, and temperature.  By doing so I hope to connect with the viewer on a more intuitive level.  I want each painting to be a window into the viewer's own experience of the land.

​Understanding an artist's style is key to understanding the history of the art world, but it can also be a very misleading practice. Just when you thought you had pinned down the notable styles of the most important artists in your art history class in high school or college. Think again.  

Here's a new perspective on style:  Consider the careers and work of some of the most important painters in the last century: Georgia O'Keeffe, Richard Deibenkorn, Willem De Kooning, Wassily Kandinsky, Mark Rothko, Jackson Pollock, Maynard Dixon, Claude Monet, Alexander Calder, Piet Mondrian, and Robert Motherwell.  There are many others, but these artists are great examples of individuals whose work evolved dramatically over time.  In their minds, consistency was another word for creative stagnation.  These artists are important because of their unceasing pursuit of a creative vision.  They valued artistic freedom over commercial success.  

Can you imagine if Vincent VanGoh painted sunflowers his whole life?  Or if Claude Monet never got past his charicatures?  Granted, in retrospect, these artists had common threads unifying most if not all of their artistic labors.  But those threads of style were never contrived; nor were they planned.  They were never based on a specific motif or brush stroke.  Their style was always a natural consequence of their artistic journey, of being true to themselves and living in the moment.

Like the tracks of a coyote zigzagging around patches of sage and juniper.  Style should never be the trail that you follow, but the tracks you leave behind.

The images below show how three of the greatest painters explored the coninuum of representation.  On the left are representational paintings, on the right are abstract paintings, in the middle are pieces that cross between the two ends of the continuum.  In some cases the abstract works are non-objective, meaning no subject other than color, line, shape, etc.

Donna and Vern took on a massive project when they decided to print this book.  I'm glad Utah's art scene has people like them to help document artists and artwork inspired by Utah's incredible landscape.  

I have a painting in here somewhere, but pay no attention to the written content about me, it says I live in Provo?  But the images are spectacular!

I have a few shows going on during the month of December.  If you have some extra time, and your in the area; please stop by:

"Utah Artist Group Show", Dave Ericson Fine Art in Salt Lake City, UT until December 25th.

"Art for Animals", Dixie State College Art Gallery, St. George, UT until January 14th.

"Holiday Art Sale", The Best Friends Animal Sanctuary Village, Kanab, UT until January 3rd.

Happy Holidays!

Josh

SALT LAKE CITY, UT--Landscape painters Joshua Baird and Valerie Orlemann are offering an art exhibit benefiting the Grand Staircase-Escalante Partners Organization.    The art exhibit will run from April 5 through June 28 at The Wine Store, 255 S. 300 E. in Salt Lake City—a venue scheduled by the Utah Arts Council.  The artists will donate 10% of their proceeds to the Grand Staircase-Escalante Partners. 

The work of these two painters includes landscapes from the Four Corners and the intermountain west.  However, both painters are based in towns bordering the Grand Staircase-Escalante National Monument.   Joshua Baird works in Kanab, while Valerie Orlemann is based in Escalante.  The artists proposed this benefit to celebrate the importance of the Monument landscape to their art and in recognition of the work of the Partners Organization.  

"The Grand Staircase-Escalante Partners is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, dedicated to raising awareness and resources in support of Grand Staircase Escalante National Monument’s scientific, interpretive, and educational programs.  Visit http://www.gsenm.org/ for more information on the Partners and their work."
--From article in Southern Utah News, press release by Valerie Orlemann. 

This series of paintings may be found under the portfolio entitled "Grand Staircase-Escalante".

I just returned from Plein Air Paradise 2007 in Midway Utah.  I received some awards and sold some paintings making it a successful trip for me.  The most valuable thing I got out of the event, was the nerve racking and exciting experience of having to whip out paintings left and right in short amounts of time.  I also met a lot of really great artists and art enthusiasts.  To see the paintings, click on the Midway Plein Air 2007 photo album icon.

Three cheers to the Midway Art Association for putting on such a wonderful event!  I'll be there for sure next year!

This painting entitled, "Grand Canyon Distance", was one of the paintings I parted with last weekend at Art in Kayenta.  I met a lot of great people, saw some beautiful artwork, and had a great time.  
This was the first time I've ever been to Kayenta, and I'm very appreciative of what they are doing over there in promoting natural landscaping, and architecture that harmonizes with the landscape.  When I drove into Kayenta at the break of Dawn on Saturday, I was amazed that of all the many homes in Kayenta, not one had a visible porch light.  No street lights, window lights, flashing lights, billboards, etc. I couldn't even see the houses.  Even when driving directly through the community, I noticed that I was only able to see the house that I was directly looking at, all the rest in my peripheral vision blended into the surrounding landscape.  We need more of these dignified desert developments that use little water, and respect the native plant life, and surrounding landscape.

Many people have expressed interest in this painting entitled "By Design".  The original has already been purchased so I've ordered 25 fine art giclee prints of the image.  The prints are on durable canvas with a glossy finish.  They are archival and look like the original painting.  Each print measures 12x17 inches and is currently priced at $120.  If you are interested, send me an email at [email protected]

Happy Holidays!

In November we lost our beloved "Papa", also known as Talmage Whiting Neilsen.  I did this painting entitled "Instruments of the Master" in the days after his passing.  Talmage was a well-known soft tissue surgeon which explains the surgery tools.  His kindness, intelligence, and humor will greatly be missed.

In October, I entered my first plein air painting competition in Escalante, Utah.  This competition was part of the Everett Ruess Days Festival.  The object was to create an image that attempted to capture the same beauty of the Grand Staircase/Escalante area that inspired the artist/wanderer Everett Ruess.  Participants had one week to do a maximum of five paintings in the categories of oil/acrylic and watercolor/mixed media.  Only one painting per category was submitted.  My oil painting entry (see above left) won an award of merit.  It was an exciting weekend!

My dad and I submitted work to the LDS Church Art Museum's International Art Exhibition. My dad's piece is entitled "Relics of the Restoration".  My piece is entitled "By Design".  

Check out some of my work at Medford Oregon's Rogue Gallery! I'll be the gallery's featured artist for the month of August 2005.  Various selections from the Impressions of Land collection will be shown there throughout the month.

I hope you enjoy the images.  If you have any comments or questions, or experience technical difficulties while navigating through the website, please let me know in the comments or send me an email at [email protected].  All prices exclude the cost of frame unless otherwise specified. 

Thank you for your visit. 

Best wishes,

Joshua Baird