Dustin Van Wechel began his career in the arts as a graphic designer and art director—and the entire time, he yearned for something different. “I always knew I wanted to do my own thing and become a fine artist, but I didn’t really know how,” he says. He began to explore art shows around the country and build relationships with other artists. “Once I started talking with other artists, they convinced me to give it a go. But honestly, I wasn’t too hard to convince.”
Van Wechel’s newest venture is Wildscapes of the West,a solo show at Broadmoor Galleries in Colorado Springs, Colorado.
The Dinner Party, oil on linen, 18 x 24 in.
When putting together a show, Van Wechel doesn’t think about traditional narrative themes—instead, he views the collection of work as a musical composition. “It’s like hitting certain notes with each piece,” he explains. “I tend to think about how the works are interacting with each other.” A large, show-stopping painting is a crescendo of the main thing, while smaller pieces hit supporting notes.
Sometimes, his ideas for paintings take a while to come to fruition. Fording the Madison,which features a herd of elk undertaking a river crossing, was originally conceived after a trip to Yellowstone in 2015. He was traveling with artist friends when he ran across the herd near the Madison River, and they stopped and spent an hour observing the animals. “Over time, they all went across the river, but they did it individually,” he remembers. “I had this idea of painting a more unified crossing.”
Fording the Madison, oil on linen, 24 x 48 in.
Van Wechel waited until 2024 to put the scene onto canvas. “It comes down to what I’m excited to paint,” he explains. “This image has lots of water and reflections and transitions of light, and I wanted to see if I could approach the water a little differently than I normally might.” Rather than using a soft brush and thinner paint, he experimented with applying paint as thickly as he could while still maintaining the soft, subtle transitions that make water feel like water.
In The Dinner Party, Van Wechel explores his fascination with grizzly bears and how they interact with other species. “Ravens, in particular, have a sort of symbiotic relationship with major predators like grizzly bears. They rely on predators to open up carcasses for them so they can eat as well,” he says. In The Dinner Party, a flock of ravens lurks around a bear, waiting for it to make a meal somewhere so that they can partake as well.
Air Traffic Control, oil on linen, 24 x 18 in.
Wildscapes of the West will feature a dozen new paintings. Gallery director Krista Steed-Reyes, says, “Dustin Van Wechel has a way of capturing light and motion in his work with effortless finesse. He captures the fleeting moment of natural beauty.” The show opens with a reception on September 5 from 4 to 8 p.m. and remains on view through October 1. —
Broadmoor Galleries 1 Lake Avenue, Colorado Springs, CO 80906 » (928) 231-3564 » www.broadmoorgalleries.com
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