Arches National Monument April 12th 1929 /Arches National Park April 12th1971
Long before Apple tracking devices it was pretty easy to tell where Peter was in his travels by the dates of his paintings. Nothing was more exciting for Peter than to be out on location. It’s about the only time in his life he would be up before dawn to catch the sun rise over a spot of interest. Peter and I and our daughter made a trip to Arches back in 1985. Peter would return to the park in 1991, 1997 and 2009.
The early history of the area indicates that hunter-gatherers migrated to the region 10,000 years ago at the end of the ice age. 2,000 years ago Ancestral Pueblos began cultivating beans, maze and squash there. Over the following years many nomadic tribes such as the Utes, Navajo, Shoshone and Paiutes would use and inhabit the area. In 1775 the first Spanish missionaries arrived, possibly looking for a new travel route to California. 100 years later European missionaries, farmers, prospectors and ranchers set down roots.
The park contains the world’s largest (over 2,000) concentration of natural sandstone formations. The most recognized being the 52 feet tall “Delicate Arch.” It is said that early cowboys had their own names for this arch such as “The Chaps”, “School Teachers Bloomers” and the “Pant’s Crotch.” Delicate Arch Trail (3 miles round trip) is considered the most popular trail in the park. It is rated difficult because of lack of shade and slippery rocks. I remember Peter telling me the story of him being at Delicate Arch as the moon came up. He was able to take many wonderful photographs of the event but soon realized he didn’t have a flashlight to get down off the rocks. Luckily the moon provided the light he needed to find his way back to his truck.
Peter did 7 paintings of Delicate Arch, the largest being 46x70. This painting was a sweeping view of the arch, its surrounding rock structure and the La Sal mountains in the background. Peter also did paintings of other park formations such as The Garden of Eden, The Organ, Double Arch, The Marching Men, The Devil’s Garden, Klondike Bluffs and Landscape Arch. Many of these paintings are still available for sale. See jpegs attached.
I will leave you with a quote from artist Thomas Eakins: “The big artist…..keeps an eye on nature and steals her tools.”