Influential Artists: The Art of Clyde Aspevig

"Clyde Aspevig’s personal and artistic horizons have unfolded expansively since his childhood on a Montana farm near the Canadian border. That period of geographical and cultural isolation was in retrospect a blessing for the artist he recalls. “Because I grew up in a vacuum in Montana, I wasn’t taught the cliches.”
He sees such naivete as allowing him to be more open to everything around him, which is especially evident in his latest works. His peripatetic field easel now ranges across the wild mountains and prairies of Montana, Death Valley, Adirondacks, rocky North Atlantic coast, Scandinavian fjords and the well-tended hillside estates of Tuscany. Growing up, he witnessed the alternatingly painful and joyful cycles of agricultural life. He was unusually fortunate to be encouraged by his family in the pursuits of art and appreciation of music. Clyde learned early on to work hard and persevere against obstacles natural and manmade. Rather than scoffing at or demeaning Clyde’s interests, Clyde’s father, the practical but open-minded farmer, bought his twelve-year-old son’s first painting.
He considers his paintings as old friends and visual souvenirs of places experienced in his life. The viewer, too, shares in Clyde’s magical evocations of the landscapes that touched him. While his early efforts attracted awards and critical praise from the regional or “Western” sector of the art community, Clyde’s work has since emerged to be highly sought after by world class collectors. In a culture notorious for nourishing illustration of stereotypical, iconic subject matter, Clyde fearlessly departed whenever he felt the call, and resisted early attempts by Western art dealers to label him and restrict him to the saleable panoramic scenics.
His paintings of the West are not theatrical sets intended to reinforce regional mythology, but rather evocations of places that he perceives as already disappearing during his own lifetime, subjects worthy of both artistic and societal preservation. The paintings reflect Clyde’s intense days of absorbing his natural surroundings, days which shaped a philosophy: “I see nature as being so much more powerful than we realize.” He sees the true value of preserving the last islands of wilderness, agreeing with the late writer Wallace Stegner that just the fact of knowing it is out there is important to the human spirit.
To Clyde Aspevig, painting expresses human emotion better than any other medium. The divine nature of light reveals to the receptive eye the timeless interaction of land forms and sky, water, flora, soil and rock. If he has any “mission” beyond the canvas in his creative endeavors, it is simply a wish to call attention to the timeless, intrinsic worth of our natural environment.The image resolves from a deliberative yet intuitive process of the artist, seeing. Nature, undistorted by the filters of acculturation.
Clyde’s intent is to create something beautiful and harmonic. While subject matter is of prime consideration, further contemplation of the painting eventually yields its subtle nuances of texture and rhythm. His paintings possess qualities meant to outlast the viewer’s initial infatuation, qualities that will endure well into succeeding generations. Each painting is a struggle and a journey for the artist, the destination a prolonged feast of discovery for the viewer. While his mastery of the medium is apparent, the desire of the artist is that technique shall never override the painting’s essential concept.
His own physical and spiritual connection with the subject’s place and time emerges on the canvas, a transformation intended to be savored as long as the work exists. As far as Clyde is concerned, some of the most powerful representations he developed were those that left something out. That the viewer notices a sense of space, rhythm and harmony is no accident.
All the while, there is the composer, with brush and palette knife, conducting, refining, coaxing, interpreting his own score. As he explains, “I use music all the time in my paintings.” The discerning viewer sees and feels the brushstrokes corresponding to musical notes and movements - legatos broad and delicate, an adagio of cured prairie grasses, a swirling vivace of light and clouds over the marcato of mountain granite. Clyde’s music touches the eyes with distinct rhythmic textures, letting the canvas reflect how earth and sky are interwoven. The result is the artist’s ethereal yet tactile manifestation of natural forces: “Paintings become symbols of all that we are.”
And yet the artist moves on, seeing, feeling, preserving on canvas what is best that remains of the New World, while absorbing excellence from masters of the Old World. If we, too, allow ourselves to look carefully, we may all become a little richer."
Sources:
art.state.gov/...
www.clydeaspev...

[@DaneSellersStudio]

Hopefully the new music I put in the video is better than the last one. Let me know if it's better than before. Thank you for bringing it to my attention everyone! UPDATE May 25, 2024: Hey everyone! I just wanted to apologize for the low-quality reproductions I chose for this video! As I mentioned in the video I created showcasing Scott Christensen's work, Clyde's work is MUCH better than what is represented in this video! His work is truly incredible. Many people say he is the greatest living landscape painter and I tend to agree! Unfortunately, this video may not back up that statement very well. It is completely on me. I could always remake this video with high-quality reproductions. Again, I apologize.

[@shelbyfife3937]

Sorry to be so critical. I’m hypersensitive to that sort of thing. I absolutely love his landscapes however. Thanks for posting!

[@DaneSellersStudio]

@@shelbyfife3937 completely understandable. I'm the same way! I'm actually working on changing the music at this very moment. Thank you, Shelby! Have a great day!

[@pmurray8065]

Do you have a playlist of the music? I play and this guitar is enchanting and I would love to know the music. The art is amazing! I also paint and I lived out west years ago; loved it there!

[@m.hartyfool]

Lovely accompaniment. Very nice.

[@coindesigner7477]

Thank you Dane for putting the work in to assemble these stunning pieces of work by Clyde!!! Its so inspiring 😃the music is great and if a person wanted, they could turn it off or down if they find it distracting 😉

[@DaneSellersStudio]

Many thanks! Clyde's work is so inspiring!

[@consueloyoung4484]

Thank you Dane for all your efforts in bringing Mr. Aspevig’s amazing talent to us. What a prolific artist he is, I could look at his art all day long. From his magestic snow covered mountains to his intricate colorful blooms. The music is wonderful, thank you for being so thoughtful. ❤🙏🏼

[@nancytipton2640]

Wow…love the photos of his amazing and numerous works. Thank you for sharing.😊

[@jand9770]

Thank you for sharing Clyde Aspevig's paintings.. I have never seen his work before.. Stunning!!! ❤️

[@DaneSellersStudio]

Glad you enjoyed it, Jane!

[@katherinepfefferpross1325]

Amazing artist! A master!

[@sylhayes8152]

Master of light

[@이수동의그림기행]

멋진작품 입니다😊

[@pchabanowich]

These gorgeous works are right out of my past, as well. Every work is so faithfully evoked, and one delights in the hands of the master. How have I not seen these before?🫶

[@MayRobertson-xd2ow]

Thank you for bringing this amazing artist to light for me. I am in complete awe.

[@DaneSellersStudio]

You're welcome, May! Glad you enjoyed it!

[@desreepettera9517]

This is amazing. I've seen his paintings at the Prix de West. I'm always drawn to them and I always linger. ❤️

[@DaneSellersStudio]

I do the same, Desree! I've been fortunate to view his work in person as well and I am always drawn to it!

[@m.hartyfool]

Wow. Just wow!

[@DaneSellersStudio]

Clyde's my favorite and it's easy to see why!

[@tomstclair961]

Absolutely beautiful !!!

[@eduardoorozco3377]

Wow! Amazing

[@linvest8466]

Beautiful!

[@davemihalic256]

This is a wonderful tribute to a great artist, and a wonderful man. I appreciate your selection of Clyde's work, and your comments on them. Music is simply a little distracting because it, as well, is a beautiful selection. Thank you for the work you put in this!

[@DaneSellersStudio]

Thank you for your thoughts, Dave! Clyde is truly a master at capturing the western landscape!

[@tr33m00nk]

These are impressive works. Those of us who are also artists would like to know more about many (all?) of the paintings. What's the medium? They look like oils but are they all? How big? There seems to be some room on many of the black "frames" to include size, medium, title.

[@DaneSellersStudio]

Hi! All of the paintings I showcased in this video are oil (Clyde works almost solely in oil). Thanks for the suggestion! I'll be sure to include the medium, size, and even title in future videos.

[@kathleenhutter4412]

Absolutely beautiful and inspiring works! Love it thank you for putting this together!

[@DaneSellersStudio]

Thank you, Kathleen!

[@coindesigner7477]

Dane I pressed the like button at 365 and it went to 364...not sure if it's a glitch or KZbin messing with your algorythm's

[@DaneSellersStudio]

Hmmm... interesting. Thanks for letting me know!

[@didgeridooblue]

Where would one go to see a collection of Clyde's paintings?

[@DaneSellersStudio]

Hi! You can check out some of his exhibitions and permanent collections on his website. Here's the link: www.clydeaspevig.com/exhibitions.html You can also view his work in galleries once in a while. Check out Astoria Fine Art, Legacy Gallery, Simpson Gallagher Gallery, Montana Trails Gallery, or Claggett/Rey Gallery. Thanks!

[@alexmaurice8109]

1:52 . Even Monet never did that !!!!

[@shelbyfife3937]

His landscapes are remarkable but consider a different soundscape. That music just plain sucks! It like fingernails on a chalkboard

[@DaneSellersStudio]

Yes I have realized that! My apologies! I will absolutely choose better music in the future.

[@dianabeaudoin3393]

Awesome. Music a bit repetitious but overall loved the visual journey.

[@marque22ful]

This is too textbook a style. It smacks right on the borderline of commercial ingenuity. The shrew has been tamed.