The Gallery

In 2014, I picked up a paintbrush and watched some online videos on acrylic painting. Since then I’ve dabbled in a variety of subjects, to include paintings of forests, mountains, water, birds, wildlife, and airplanes. A couple years ago I made the jump to painting with oils, and I couldn’t be happier with the results. Most of what you’ll find below has been sold, but check out our prints or our original paintings which are still available for purchase.

Landscape Paintings

Landscapes have always been one of my favorite subjects. Painting landscapes with oil has increased the range of techniques I can utilize and it’s made it even more fun. Over the years I’ve dabbled with forests, mountains, spreading ranges of hills, and storm clouds. God’s creation offers an endless wealth of inspiration in this area.

winding road between winter trees with evergreen leaning over fall leaves on ground.

landscape open valley with distant mountains small dusty path and winer grass fall colors

dirt road forks to wind past grassy hills trees in distance

wide landscape rolling hills and fields white clouds blue sky

snowy cabin and trees sunset over mountains

wide open grass prairie hills mountains in distance cloudy blue grey sky

Aviation Paintings

When I was seven years old, my family moved to a larger city, a place where I discovered airplanes. I was soon drawing airplanes and playing with models, and when I was 18, I started flying them. Today, I fly Cessna Skycouriers as an airline pilot for a small company which contracts with FedEx. I have enjoyed all the airplanes I’ve flown, and I’ve been fortunate enough to paint many of them—ones that I’ve flown and others that my clients have flown. It’s been a fun combination of several interests—painting landscapes, clouds, and airplanes all within the same piece.

Right Crosswind 18 KLRJ no watermark copy.jpg

Touching the Clouds no Watermark copy.jpg

West Practice Area no watermark copy.jpg

raindrops streaking across airplane window

Birds

Before I got into landscape painting, I was drawing birds. I loved watching, catching, and whistling at birds at a very young age, and so it was natural for them to be a focus of my artistic endeavors as well. I think they prefer being painted over being caught and handled.

Red Breasted Nuthatch no watermark copy.jpg

Farms and Pastures

I was born and raised a city kid, but both sets of grandparents lived on and operated small farms. So I was a farm boy at heart. I have enjoyed painting farm machinery, pastures, and barns, many of which have been commissions. A common request I’ve received is to paint the view from some pasture overlooking the surrounding area where Grandpa used to farm and where Dad grew up. It is a sad fact that many of these places are not being passed onto the next generation of farmers—many small farms simply disappear as the big industries buy them out and the kids move to the city to find desk jobs. So a lot of these have been bittersweet projects, but I am honored to have been a part of preserving the old memories.

red Farmall tractor on grass painting on sawblade

new growth on field hills trees fence mailbox wide view landscape open sky clouds

bee buzzes near apple blossom in apple tree red apples

john deer tractors on gooseneck trailer snowy night cloudy exhaust

old farm hand pump board fence shed beside field

grassy creek bank leaning fence ceder tree

sun through falling rain leaning tree by wooden gate posts muddy ground

green John Deer tractor sitting on dirt painting on sawblade

john deer tractor plowing field red barn with green hill behind trees

woodland dirt path leading up grassy hill with cedar trees purple and yellow flowers

puddles in muddy track through flowers grass and trees

black and white cow resting in grass barbed wire fence

farm overlook pasture and fields trees around house

foggy marsh with sagging old fence through water dead tree green reeds

grassy hill bright tree red old barn and silo

deer in field around an antique farm implement licking salt

dusky windmills sun streaming behind cloud

wooden fence tall grass farm in distance trees

snowy day small car and big barn shovel leaning on woven wire fence

Lakes and Rivers

I have always enjoyed playing around with light, and it is something that people sometimes mention about my work in general. But add water to the equation and everything changes—light bends, travels through, and reflects off of water, quite often all at the same time in various locations throughout a single piece. It’s a fun project to analyze and think through how the light rays interact with the surface, the waves, and the objects lying still and quiet underneath.

boy fishing in lake on pier island with trees clouds reflect in water

rushing stream over grass and rocks water fall green tree

fall leaves yellow and orange float on water

cliffs over river orange tree reflected in water pink rocks

green grassy steep bank with trees over lazy stream of water

sun through green leaves trees over rushing stream mossy rocks and white water

grey tall rocks white bridge calm river green trees

many yellow leaves float on water in stream

sun shines through dark clouds over rippling lake

water fall between green and yellow trees and grey rock rushing down to river

gentle sun streams down between clouds on green hill and calm lake

snowy day creek bank with rushing icy water cardinal in winter tree snowy cedar trees sun on snow

moon behind dark clouds over lake with dark cedar trees

setting sun streams across pine trees to tough calm river water bend under mountain

leaning tree drops leaves into placid river water light on ripples

bright green tree on river bank rushing sparkling water under cliff

wooden bridge over creek orange green brown fall trees

snow topped mountain birch trees calm stream and fields

foggy day rocks lonely bare tree in water

orange fall tree leans over stream with grassy banks

Forest Scenes

There’s something enchanting about the forest. Depending on the type of trees, the time of day, the weather, and the location, there’s a huge variety of atmospheres to be had, many times all in the same place depending on where the sun is. Forests hold a quiet serenity mixed with intrigue and other-worldliness that many find both relaxing and somehow unsettling at the same time. It’s as if we don’t belong there—where people settle, trees are used, like God intended. They are cut down and put to productive work, and the gap in the canopy lets enough sun through to grow crops that we can eat. I’m not saying we should cut down all our woods—there is certainly a place for trees in this world. But an unclaimed forest is both interesting and dangerous, precisely because we have not cultivated this part of the earth that God has given us. Therefore, one must tread with care.

red pine forest path under green trees with ferns sunbeams through trees

small white mushrooms on moss under tall trees

old railroad tracks in the forest green grass trees

wooden bridge with green branches sun beams streaming in

wooden steps leading down to creek blue purple flowers thin trees

little waterfalls across rocks green grass mossy rocks under forest trees

tall chimney rock with green yellow trees blue sky

yellow trees around grey red chimney rock

two handled crosscut saw blade painted with fall summer spring leaves and flowers

Seascapes

Water is hard to capture—it has a vast array of different tones. Sometime’s it’s a clear mirror, emanating peace. Other times it’s deathly violent, tearing and crushing everything in its path. Between the two extremes, it offers enough painting inspiration to last my lifetime and whichever of my children pick up the brush when I set it down.

wattermann-california-no-watermark copy.jpg

cross shaped sun rays sunset over red seas ocean and clouds

Clouds and Sunshine

Like seascapes, clouds are constantly changing, offering a wide array of resources to draw inspiration from. As a pilot, I am blessed to have the additional perspective of actually moving through the scenery in 3-D, which is an amazing experience.

Animals and Wildlife

Yes, I know—birds are animals. But they fly. Can dogs fly? Maybe, in extreme circumstances.

About half of these are commissions, many times of people’s pets, and the other half I did in my spare time. These have since sold, but I enjoy a good challenge of painting animals, especially wildlife.

Howling at the Moon no watermark copy.jpg

Streets and Houses

I have enjoyed the privilege of painting a variety of homes for people who wanted to commemorate “what it used to look like” in an original painting. Or that one quaint old street in Germany you remember so well from your last trip. Even as a landscape artist at heart, I still find this subject area intriquing.

Saw something you liked?

Some of these are actually still for sale, either as a print or as an original painting. But if scrolling ALL the way down here has given you another idea about a custom project, I’d love to hear about it. Take a look through the section on commissions to gather more information or contact me directly to start the ball rolling.