2007 Honored Artist 
Clyde Aspevig
Of his painting, world-renowned landscape artist Clyde Aspevig says,
“I chose to paint realistic landscapes because I was drawn
to recreating nature in a way that appealed to my own ideas, senses
and intellect. I am firmly convinced that a literal naturalistic
painting can still satisfy the passions of an intellectual mind.
Inventing your own concept of realism is the first and most important
stop in achieving that goal.” 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.
“Because I grew up in a vacuum I Montana, I wasn’t taught
the clichés.” He sees such naiveté as allowing
him to be more open to everything around him, which is especially
evident in his latest works. Aspevig’s subjects range from
the wild mountains and prairies of Montana, Death Valley, and the
Adirondacks, to the rocky North Atlantic coast, Scandinavian fjords
and the well-tended hillside estates of Tuscany. His work is found
in the permanent collections of the National Arts Club in New York,
the Buffalo Bill Historical Center in Cody, the Colorado Historical
Museum in Denver, the Museum of the Rockies in Bozeman, and many
other museums around the country. Aspevig’s recent awards
include the Autry National Center’s 2006 Trustees Purchase
Award, the 2006 Autry National Center’s John J. Geraghty Award,
and the 2004 Lifetime Achievement Award, Masters of the American
West Fine Art Exhibition and Sale, Autry Museum of Western Heritage.
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