Background
Mount Shasta – The North Face is a special project that came into being after prominent collectors from northern California shared with me their desire to see more paintings of their beloved Mount Shasta – particularly the majestic north side, a part of California that is often overlooked by contemporary landscape artists.
We decided that we would remedy the apparent scarcity of paintings by inviting a select group of artists to travel to Mount Shasta and paint the environs en plein air.
I specifically chose four nationally renowned artists, each who would bring his own style and unique interpretation to the project. Other factors that I took into consideration were that their works should be complementary as a whole, and that the artists were convivial – as they would be spending two weeks together.
Artists Peter Adams, Daniel W. Pinkham, Frank Serrano and Alexey Steele set off together in the latter part of May 2005 eager to depict the rarely painted surroundings of Mount Shasta’s north side. Equipped with their portable easels, hiking gear, mountain bikes and seven dogs, the artists caravanned from Los Angeles up to California’s true north.
Mount Shasta is the second highest volcano in the United States and is recognized as one of the most sacred mountains of the world. Mount Shasta provides pure waters to the Sacramento Valley and has a rich biodiversity, numerous pristine natural sanctuaries, and revered areas of high significance to Native American cultures.
I am delighted that American Legacy Fine Arts could be part of this very special journey to capture this stunning and spectacular region of the Golden State.
~ Elaine Adams
Director
American Legacy Fine Arts, LLC
The Artists’ Diary
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- Artist Daniel W. Pinkham, ALFA’s Director Elaine Adams, and artist Peter Adams have just a few more things to squeeze into the van before they caravan for their twelve-hour drive to the north side of Mount Shasta. They will be joined on this northern California adventure by fellow artists Frank Serrano and Alexey Steele, and the Adams’s seven dogs. To properly equip the trip they are taking with them the basic provisions – food, clothing, painting supplies, two mountain bikes and plenty of dog food.
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- Are we ready to leave yet?
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- The artists wanted to have some cattle relocated to a nearby site to add some bucolic interest to a specific scene they were painting. Peter Adams, seen here gathering his six border collies and one Australian Shepard, is about to give them the command to herd the cattle in the background towards the desired location. The dogs just loved getting in touch with their highland herding roots!
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- Daniel W. Pinkham finds a field of wildflowers, including the purple Wilkins Bellflower, and stops at roadside to capture their vivid colors.
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- The ranch house where the artists stayed for ten days was situated just below Mount Shasta. This is a working ranch with 10,000 acres and lots of cows, bulls, horses and real cowboys! From the bottom of the steps and towards the top landing are artists Frank Serrano, Alexey Steele, Peter Adams and Daniel W. Pinkham. And in the foreground, from left to right are, Smoochie and Gimpy Goo.
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- Here’s a grand view of Mount Shasta from the ranch road as Peter Adams captures the scene en plein air.
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- Here’s a spectacular view of Mount Shasta through the ranch gates. Standing from left to right are Daniel W. Pinkham with Smoochie, Alexey Steele and Peter Adams with Panda. Kneeling in front is Frank Serrano with Jaipur and Lefty Loo.
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- Frank Serrano finds elegance in the simplicity of a recently cut field bordered by a row of trees.
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- Here is an image of nature at its pristine best, with the dogs contemplating the peaceful wilderness of Mount Shasta’s interior.
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- Alexey Steele contends with rural life by making a cellular call to the outside world.
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- And here’s the entire sled team! From front to back and left to right: Panda, Gimpy Goo, Lefty Loo, Big Guy, Little Guy, Jaipur and Smoochie.
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