Ann Korologos Gallery presents “Dan Young: Colorado Impressions,” a solo exhibition featuring the impressionist landscape paintings of local artist, Dan Young. Meet the artist at his opening reception on Saturday, July 10th from 5 to 7PM at Ann Korologos Gallery in historic downtown Basalt. The exhibition is on view through July 20th, 2021.

“Dan Young has been part of this gallery longer than anyone on our team, myself included,” reflects gallery owner, Ann Korologos. “Over the years, Young has mastered the challenges posed by painting on location regardless of the season and has earned a reputation as one of Colorado’s premier landscape artists. Watching his work evolve over the last many years, first as a collector, and then as a curator, has been a pleasure.”

Young’s work depicts beloved locations and pastimes of the West with emphasis on the Roaring Fork Valley, where he was raised, and the surrounding areas. His plein air paintings often take the viewer to the boundaries where nature meets man, from fishermen casting in local streams, to ranches set amongst the mountains and valleys, to fields dotted with fences and structures, to men, cattle, or horses nestled in the wild landscape. He explains, “Though I’m a landscape painter, I like introducing hints of man’s presence.  Sometimes I feel I’m in a race to paint a disappearing way of life.” 

The painter, whose studio is in Silt, CO, finds his inspiration in his greater “backyard.” With his easel, oil paint, brushes, canvas, and palette in hand, Young journeys across often familiar terrain until it calls him to stop. A quick sketch allows the artist to organize the landscaped for onto two dimensions, and then he paints en plein air, completing larger canvases in the studio. “Painting from life is going to the source, and capturing the color values from life are one of the most important elements in my work, reflects Young. “It’s all about gathering more knowledge and understanding of your subject from that first-hand observation. No filters. Just you and Mother Nature.”

Young’s work feels familiar to those who know the wild of the West, sometimes taking the viewer right back to an experience and place. He continually delights in discovering new subject matter in familiar surroundings, and finding inventive ways to paint it. “What has inspired me as an artist has changed over time,” shares Young. “Growing up in Colorado, how can you not be inspired by the mountains, the rivers? Nowadays, I’ll go out and look for an idea, a shape, an emotion. I used to go out and look for a pretty picture, but now I go out and look for what interests me—a shadow dancing across snow, light reflecting off a landscape, an unexpected shape that changes the composition —that's what challenges me to create in my own style.”

“Dan Young: Colorado Impressions” is on view July 10th through July 20th at Ann Korologos Gallery in historic downtown Basalt. View the exhibition “under the clocktower” at 211 Midland Avenue in Basalt, and virtually at korologosgallery.com. Join the gallery email list for early access, artist insights, and “sneak peeks” of new arrivals.