Gerald Peters Gallery in Santa Fe, New Mexico, will soon showcase the abstract impressionist paintings of Theodore Waddell, a culmination of 18 months of work. In his paintings, Waddell lovingly depicts the land and animals of the rural West.
Working in oil and encaustic, Waddell’s works have an almost sculptural quality to them, making it easy for the viewer to imagine his animal subjects moving across the canvas.
Lewistown Horses #3, oil and encaustic on canvas, 18 x 36”
“Artist, rancher and storyteller, Theodore Waddell, is one of the West’s most celebrated and recognized contemporary artists,” says Maria Hajic, director of Gerald Peters Gallery. “His signature style of bold brushstrokes, textures, and generous layers of impasto capture the beauty and harshness of ranch life in the high plains and mountain valleys of the Rocky Mountains. These paintings are grounded in his profound and inextricable connection to the land and animals he loves.”
Waddell considers himself more of an artist that lives in the West than a Western artist. “I live in the West. People want to categorize artists as Western artists, and they often have spurs and hats and things like that,” he says. “I don’t. I say I’m a Western artist because I live here.”
Winter Angus #17, oil and encaustic on canvas, 30 x 36”
When beginning a new painting, Waddell considers sizing to be critical. “I always feel that for every idea, there’s a canvas size that is appropriate for it,” he says. At any one time, he has 40 or 50 canvases stretched at all different sizes. “Once I’ve picked the right size, I can start painting.”
Most, if not all, of his paintings refer to a specific geographical location. He spends much of his time traveling back and forth between his studios in Idaho and southwestern Montana, and the landscapes of that well-tread path continue to provide inspiration.
“I go over a lot of the same trails and I always end up seeing the same animals and the same sort of landscape,” he says. One of his favorite plants is the often-maligned sage brush. “People don’t like sagebrush, but those people don’t know a thing. Sagebush is quite wonderful.”
His upcoming show will feature views from the towns of Broadview, Lavina and Lewiston, including Lewiston Horses #3,which features a herd of horses dotting an agrarian landscape.
Lavina Angus, oil and encaustic on canvas, 24 x 24”
In addition to painting, Waddell has recently spent time working on a series of picture books starring his Bernese mountain dog, Tucker. “We’ve had Bernese mountain dogs for over 25 years, and they are just wonderful, goofy dogs. All they want to do is be where you are and sit on your feet,” he says. “I started making drawings of them and the drawings kind of expanded into picture books.” The latest book in the series, Tucker Plays the Back Nine, came out in January.
Approximately half a dozen new works by Waddell will be on view in his show at Gerald Peters Gallery. The exhibition opens on September 29 and remains on view through November 30. —
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