A Utah-based artist whose favourite subjects to paint are rugged, rough-hewn and rigorous, figures he’ll have plenty of inspiration in Jasper this weekend.
Stewart Anstead is an acrylics painter who incorporates mixed media in his works to evoke nostalgia, and to explore human interaction with nature.
But when Anstead is live-painting at Mountain Galleries in the Fairmont Jasper Park Lodge today (Saturday, March 15) and tomorrow, the retired ad man-turned artist will be especially interested in the interactions between himself and his fellow Rocky Mountains residents.
“Even though we’re separated by 1,000 miles we live on the same mountain range,” Anstead said. “I want to try to understand the thoughts of folks who cherish this land.”
Anstead himself cherishes not only the rugged Rockies, but the people who live there—those who “appreciate getting their hands dirty at work,” he says.
After all, that’s what he’s doing.
“My work is sloppy and grungy and then ends up looking like something more when It’s done.”
Anstead took Friday to acquaint himself with the Jasper townsite and some of the folks living here. The thoughtful conversations he had with gallery attendants, business owners and other everyday Albertans will serve his painting process, he suggested.
“I wanted to visit Jasper specifically because of the fire,” he said. “Fire evokes emotion. I think there’s going to be a lot to learn from that.”
Just like Anstead wasn’t hiding his curiosity of how the wildfire has affected local residents, local residents he’s visited with haven’t been shy about asking him about being an American in such politically divisive times.
“A really good baseball game is one where you don’t notice the officials. That’s how I like my politicians,” he said.
Moreover, Anstead said he thinks of politics these days as a terrible TV program—and he’s choosing to change the channel.
That way “it doesn’t impact my love for my country and it doesn’t change my respect for [yours],” he wrote.
Citizens of both nations have been enthralled by Anstead’s work. His main muses come from commissions in his home country, but Mountain Galleries—which has studios in Jasper, Banff and Whistler—has exhibited his art and invited him to paint in Jasper, in part because Anstead celebrates the very fibre that this community was built on.
“He honours enthusiasts who venture further to see what lies just beyond the next trail,” Mountain Galleries one-sheet reads.
To see Anstead’s process in action, and to interact with the neighbourly creator, visit Mountain Galleries at the Fairmont Jasper Park Lodge this weekend.
Bob Covey // bob@thejasperlocal.com
