CELEBRATING100 YEARS OF MARATHON OIL IN WYOMING

Friday night, August 24th Marathon Oil Company celebrated their 100th year in Wyoming and it was kind a big deal for Pamela and myself.  The painting you see in this picture I painted for the Marathon Oil Company and has been featured in the Buffalo Bill Museum all summer along with three other paintings.  That in itself is a high honor. The banquet Friday night  featured speakers Governor Matt Mead, Senator Al Simpson, Senator Mike Enzi along with the CEO of Marathon, Clarence P. Cazalot.  I was asked to share a few words when a full size giclee reproduction was given to Governor Mead.  

My daughters Heather Hopkinson Nielsen and Summer Hopkinson Lofgran accompanied Pamela and me. It was a fun night.

The Church News-Glen Paints German History

ELDER THOMAS S. MONSON GIVES AN APOSTOLIC BLESSING IN EAST GERMANY

This painting is the cover for The Church News published by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (that's the Mormon Church for those who like shorter titles).  I was pretty thrilled to see this and the other two paintings I painted for President Bjorn Bauerfeind who lives in Lipzieg, Germany.  The article gives the account of meeting Bjorn (early morning by e-mail and then in person) and doing three interesting paintings that represent three moments of LDS history in Germany from 1976 (the Blessing by Elder Monson) and the missionary grafitti on the west side of the Berlin Wall prior to 1989 and then Bjorn being able to leave East Germany in 1990 and serve an LDS Mission in Oregon, USA. 

For those who don't know, Thomas S. Monson is now the President of the LDS Church.

Make sure you go to lds.org and link onto The Church News to see the full article.  "direct link: http://www.ldschurchnews.com/articles/print/62467/Painting-history.html"

Pack String At Jenny Lake

Years ago my cousin B.Todd Hopkinson was a wrangler with horses and pack strings at Jenny Lake in the Teton National Park.  He commissioned this piece to hang over his fireplace in his home.  He even posed for it. The painting shows Mount Moran in the background.

Part Location and Part Studio

Several Years back while living in Mesa Arizona I watched as the clouds started piling up during the Monsoon season.  I grabbed my portable easle and drove over to the Rio Salido (Salt River) to the approximate location that the settlers from Utah crossed.  I painted the clouds and light on Red mountain at that spot.  While the river was dry I was already planning the crossing scene that I would paint in my studio at a later time.

Location Painting...then to the Studio

Early one morning I grabbed my paint bucket and French Easle, got in my pickup and drove up the Catalina Highway in Tucson to find something exciting to paint.  I hadn't gone more than five miles up the mountain road and came around the second switchback and found my spot.  The 24 x 18 inch canvas on the left is the sketch I did that morning.  That was a year or two ago.  Three or four months ago I began the painting on the right.  A 30 x 40 composition of harmony; color, light and shadow, representing a beautiful Arizona morning in the Santa Catalina Mountains.  

The Importance of Painting on Location

In my (oh so humble) opinion, any artist worth his salt will want to paint on location or from live models as often as possible.  The paintings above are paintings I did on location near my Arizona home. 

The Bjorn Bauerfeind Project

Several months ago I received an email from Bjorn Bauerfeind, a young business man who grew up in East Germany.  He was aware that I have painted many Historical Paintings, representing the early history of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.  He explained that he would like me to paint some scenes of the history of the Church in East Germany.
As Communism disintigrated in the Soviet Block nations, the wall came down and East Germany and West Germany began the efforts of reuniting.  Bjorn Bauerfeind's parents drove him through an opening in the wall, (the guards no longer armed with machine guns) to the airport to fly to the United States to begin serving the mission for the L.D.S. Church in Oregon. 

Marathon Oil Company-100 years in Wyoming-Finished!

Marathon Painting-Finished! (Uh oh. Not quite!)

Here I am working on a few small details, anxious to sign this painting which is looking very good.  A person who sees how much time I'm spending on this painting asks me if I'm a perfectionist.  I don't think a painting can ever achieve perfection, at least not in the artist's eyes. I am, however, trying to make it the best painting I can possibly make.  I'm almost there and then, today as I am painting I notice a couple of things that are bothering me...

More soon.

The Marathon Project- 100 Years in Wyoming

In these three sketches (still thinking of doing a triptych) I decided to drop the oil workers in the side paintings and bring out the Wyoming animals.  

August of 2011, Lucinda Greer, Senior Land Professional at Marathon Oil Company contacted me to talk about doing a painting representing the history of Marathon Oil in Wyoming.  It was perfect timing.  I had just moved back to Byron, Wyoming, the middle of one of the biggest oil fields in the state. During the weeks prior I had been out in those oil fields painting all the rocks and landscapes I had played in and on as a boy.  

I was delighted and anxious to start smooshing paint all over a bunch of canvases.  Our initial discussions concluded with me doing research in Marathon's photo files and agreeing to do several presentation sketches. These sketches allow the client to see different ideas on how I could approach the project.  I also welcome their comments and thoughts on which directions we take.  This exchange of ideas is always valuable.

March 1st 2012 was the date we agreed that I would be finished. "Ha!", thought I. "I will easily finished by March 1st."  As of this moment, March 1st is only days away and I still have a bunch or work to do to finish the painting.  (I think I can...I think I can...I think I can...).

100 Years of Marathon Oil in Wyoming

In August, shortly after I had begun setting up my studio in Byron, Wyoming I received a call from Lucinda Greer, an executive from Marathon Oil Company whose office is in Cody.  She wanted me to do a painting or paintings that would represent the history of Marathon Oil in Wyoming over the last 100 years.  

I felt I was perfect for the job.  In the 50s, when I was a boy and my friends and I would ride our bikes or horses out to the sandhills North of Byron I was always amazed at the "forest" of oil derricks around our town.  We were in the middle of the oil business and most of my friend's fathers were employed by Ohio Oil Co. (later to become Marathon Oil".  

I started the project by painting several sketches to be considered to define the direction I would go in the final painting.  The panel that is pictured here was a suggestion that we could go forward with a "triptych"; a trio of paintings that would hang together. This idea would show the oil worker of the past on one side and the worker of the present on the other with a Wyoming landscape and different aspects of the oil business in the middle picture.

More on this project soon...

A Mormon Missionary from Communist East Germany...cont.

I met Bjorn Bauerfeind in Salt Lake City.  He had flown from Lipzig, Germany to discuss a tryptich of paintings he wanted me to paint for him.  Lipzig, Germany used to be behind the Berlin Wall which was the Democratic Republic of Germany, DRP or as we in the west referred to as "East Germany".  As the Communist Soviet Union crumbled, so did the communist allies and the Berlin Wall came down in 1989.
Bjorn had seen some of the historical scenes I had painted and wanted paintings of some of the history that has happened in the Church in East Germany.  Through emails and our personal visit his story proved to be extremely interesting.
Bjorn grew up in an atmosphere where the DRP not only discouraged religious practice but actively persecuted churches, spied on them and sometimes people were jailed for their religious beliefs.  The Mormon people were among those targeted by the government and yet they remained devoted and strong in their faith during all the years under communist tyranny.
My wife Pamela and I met with Bjorn and were delighted by this tall (6'4") smiling young (early 40s) businessman who spoke great American (that is sort of like English) with only a slight German accent.  
As mentioned in an earlier post, Bjorn left East Germany in 1989 and served an LDS Mission in Oregon.  While in the Mission Training Center he saw a photograph of a drawing on the Berlin Wall created by some other missionaries serving in West Berlin depicting the Plan of Salvation, a line drawing with circles and stick figures that every person who has taught a Sunday School class is familiar with.  The above sketch is the one approved by Bjorn and his family and this design will be the one that becomes a finished painting.

Glory Over The Catalinas

A visit to my studio in Tucson gives me a few days break from the Wyoming winter and a some time to share with my family. This scene shows the Catalina Mountains outside my studio window with a giant cloud formation piling high above.  More than cows and horses going by I might see some jack rabbits or coyotes. 

The Wall Comes Down! Bjorn Leaves on a Mission

Preparation Sketch of the Bauerfeinds taking son Bjorn to leave on his Mission.

As Communism disintigrated in the Soviet Block nations, the wall began to come down and East Germany and West Germany began the efforts of reuniting (two Koreas please take a page out of that notebook!).  Bjorn Bauerfeind's parents drove him past the open gates, (the guards no longer armed with machine guns) to the airport to fly to the United States to begin serving the mission for his Church in Oregon.  The sketch above is another version of Bjorn and his parents driving past the gate guards and the jubilant people celebrating the coming down of the wall. This is the sketch that will develop into a finished painting.

I'll have more about how I came to know Bjorn soon.

A Mormon Missionary from Communist East Germany!

A rough sketch of Bjorn Bauerfeind leaving East Germany to serve as a Missionary.

Several months ago I received an email from Bjorn Bauerfeind, a young business man who lives in Leipzig, Germany.  He was aware that I have painted many Historical Paintings, representing the early history of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.  He explained that he would like me to paint some scenes of the history of the Church in East Germany.

Before the Berlin Wall came down in 1989 The DPR or Democratic Peoples Republic of Germany was known as East Germany by those of us in the West and Bjorn's home of Leipzig is located there.   When World War Two ended in 1945, Germany was devastated.  They had lost millions of people, soldiers and civilians.  Primarily a result of Hitler and the Nazi leadership in Germany being  determined to fight to the death.  After the fighting ceased, the nation of Germany was divided.  The Allies, consisting of the Americans, British and French, instituted a more open and free  government in West Germany and the Russians created a harsh communist government in East Germany.  Over the years, fences went up, guards were posted and eventually the wall went up, all to keep people from fleeing the confines of East Germany.  Many people were imprisoned, or shot and killed trying to leave.   

Wherever Communism governs, there is a determined effort to abolish religion.  Church people of all religions were the victims of Official persecution and bigotry.  Opportunities in work and education were revoked by those who practiced their faith.  Church meetings were always under surveillance by Government spies.  

So how did the young Mormon, named Bjorn Baurfiend, come to serve an L.D.S. Mission in Oregon in the United States?  To be continued....

Wyoming-Our New Home

Moving my studio to Byron, Wyoming is complete (pretty much) and I've used winter wagon train scenes to represent that long move (we started in June) because we could have come by wagon train in the same amount of time and we drove two trucks in the winter time.  Mind you, if we had come by wagon train we would have far less of our stuff with us.

The Move

This painting represents our move from Arizona to Wyoming. It would show us coming into snowy Wyoming even though I traded the speckled oxen for an Xterra and a Budget Truck.  I lost my sheep but I still have plenty of "sheep dip" (that means stuff if you don't catch the inuendo).

Although we are moving from the beautiful semi-arid (no snow) Tucson, Arizona to semi-arid (quite a bit of snow) Byron, Wyoming, this picture represents how I feel the slow and tiring effort a move is.

You Can Lead a Horse to Water, But...

A cowboy up the South Fork of the Shoshone River near Cody, Wyoming posed on his pinto along with his two pack horses. When he brought the horses up to the river, his horse drank his fill and the other two just stood there. So it really is true that you can lead a horse to water but you can't make him drink.

NEW! LIMITED EDITION PRINT: SACRED SUSQUEHANNA

I’m pretty excited about the response I’ve gotten from my painting called “SACRED SUSQUEHANNA” that was recently published on the inside front cover of the Ensign Magazine (June Issue).  I’ve wanted to bring it out as a Limited Edition Reproduction for sometime and finally that time has arrived.  It will measure 20x25 and will be reproduced on the highest quality artist canvas as a Giclee (G-Clay is how it is pronounced).  There will only be 50 reproductions made and 5 Artist Proofs.  Each finished canvas will be approved, signed and numbered by me.  The price is $749 with the frame, suitable for hanging.