Grizzly-Canadian Rockies

I live on the edge of a wildlife corridor on the edge of town in Banff, Alberta. Wildlife encounters is a part of daily life. We have elk, deer, cougars, coyotes and wolves passing by regularly. I have only seen a Grizzly bear twice behind our home, in 20 years of living here.

In my life playing in the mountains, I have always felt a closeness to the Grizzly bear. In some ways I feel it is one of my spirit animals. I have seen it's fresh paw prints in the mud and in the snow. I have come across large piles of steaming bear crap at trails edge. Numerous times I have seen Grizzly from the window of my car as it grazes in the long grass at the edge of the forest.

I have created quite a few paintings for my upcoming art show, November 17th, in Banff. Many are local scenes that I hope people will enjoy. I decided to step out of my comfort zone and paint Grizzly. A new challenge, something for me.

My first task is to lay down some layers of color in lighter tones. I want to try and capture the look of the coat of the Grizzlies fur.

The gauntlet is down.

Robert Krysak