By K.J. Schricker
Writer, Carbon County Comet
A duck hiding in a piece of basswood, a UP 4000 series steam locomotive running across an aluminum canvas, the dark, predatory stare of a Siberian Tiger, a Bull Bison, the lord and high king of the high plains and mountain prairies staring out of a maelstrom of chaotic oil paints–all images sighted at the 2023 Festival of the Arts at the Platte Valley Community Center on a fine first of July day in southern Wyoming.
Many people do not realize how many excellent artists live so close. Artists are seen as something ‘over there’ out of reach, but all across Wyoming, Colorado and Nebraska, artists abound and take the fullest advantage of the natural beauty the Great Plains and Rocky Mountains have to offer. From wildlife that we admire and hunt to histories we wish we could have seen, these artists bring life and scope to the world around us that we may not be able to grasp in our day-to-day lives.
There were seasoned veterans at the art show like Allison Pluda-John and new faces like Aspen Boxberger, who has yet to get her sheepskin from Encampment High School.
Art ranges in styles that appeal to everyone and cover the gambit of genres, from oil paints to pastels to three-dimensional arts like alabaster and wood carving. The truly daring has moved from conventional canvases to such things as turkey feathers and aluminum plates.
Among the talented artists was Aspen Boxberger, a young North Platte River Valley scholar. She is a Sophomore at Encampment High School and shows promise in her painting and canvas works. She quietly sat at the end of the main aisle amid her many very fine works. Her Blue Dragonfly is a step out of her standard. Most of Boxberger’s paintings are of subjects from her ranch life. The Dragonfly showed an eye for fine detail and exotic shape. Her ability as an artist is blossoming, and Carbon County can expect big things from Boxberger in the future.
When an artist presents a showcase of their works, a small sampler rarely draws so much attention. Carla Stroh has a technique with her paints and chemicals that makes Chaos a compliment; foxes sit before a bleeding cliff, a dappled grey horse is at once beautiful and haunting, even the minute picture shrunk down to business card size of a Buffalo Bull coming out of a maelstrom of blues and greys is an incredible thing to behold. It is easy to see how skill and happy chance come together on her canvases to create images that rile the senses.
The reflective backing on Allison Pluda-John’s photography grabs the eye and moves the soul. It is truly amazing how a metal backing makes a photograph explode off the wall. Even a seemingly simple black and white of Union Pacific’s 4014 takes on a whole new life as the back reflection adds motion to one of the largest vehicles human hands have ever created. Pluda-John’s sunsets and nature scenes have a life all there, as light is worked in ways one is not used to but can genuinely enjoy.
Feather painting is a unique skill that takes nature painting to a new level. Debbie Thomas and Dan Andrews have become masters at this technique. Distressing feather shafts make a dreamy, whimsical element that works in three dimensions. The natural pigments of the feathers make for ever-changing backgrounds of contour and texture. Dan Andrews’ canvas works to create dramatic movement when allowed to have the space to show such sights as a pair of fighting Elk Bulls. His work has a genius of movement that is difficult to replicate. Debbie Thomas’ delivers a haunting image in her ability to make the lifelike whimsical.
The Saratoga Art Show showcased the incredible talent and diversity of the Wyoming, Colorado, and Nebraska regional artists. Each artist brought their own style and perspective to the natural beauty of the Great Plains and Rocky Mountains. Overall, the Saratoga Art Show was a visual delight, and it is hoped that it will continue to grow and showcase the incredible talent of regional artists in the future.
