Colourful Cascade Locals-Canadian Rockies

It's Springtime in the Rockies. Our porch got to 13c today......it was great to sit in the sun, absorb the heat from its rays. We have more daylight each day.....we are coming out of the darkness.

I have had a large canvas sitting in my studio the past few months, waiting for some attention. I initially sketched an image of Cascade Mountain on it. Cascade towers above my home town of Banff. You cannot help to see it from wherever you are in town.

The other day, I put some thought and energy into the canvas. I thought of how Cascade Mtn. is around us all the time. I then started to think of locals in the valley that are ever present in our daily existence. Ravens, Elk, Coyotes and soon Grizzlies share the valley with us, and are visible every day.

I painted "Colourful Cascade Locals" to pay homage and respect to the special animals and peak that we share this landscape with.

In the sky, I wanted to capture that magical moment where day changes to night...that glow you get where the warmth of the sun gradually changes and fades to a clear, cold darkness. You can feel the sting of the cold air on your cheeks. The stars shimmer, and the stellar dance across the sky ebbs and flows while the colorful warmth of the day fades into the darkness.

Cascade Mountain towers above us...absorbs all it sees. I wanted to capture in it's slopes the changing colours of the sky. Like a mirror, I wanted the mountain to reflect and capture all it is seeing.

The "Colourful Cascade Locals". Raven in the sky, Elk walking across the left side of the canvas, Coyote howling in the center....Grizzly entering the canvas from the right. Each spirit animal began with the same colour of New Gamboge to show their unity as powerful partners in this world. I then added other colours to feature each animals personality and characteristics.

I truly enjoyed the journey this painting took me on.

Robert Krysak

Colourful Cascade Locals
Watercolour on Canvas
24"x 30"
$400