Fremont Ellis Painting of “Santa Isabella Creek” [R]

Fremont Ellis was a Santa Fe painter, printmaker, teacher and founder of the Santa Fe group known as Los Cincos Pintores (The Five Painters).  Ellis was the most conservative of the group.  Ellis, before Santa Fe, was a native of Montana who was headed for a career as an optometrist.  He left Montana and moved to El Paso, Texas.  A trip to Santa Fe in 1919 for a summer of painting ended up becoming his life home.

This painting of Santa Isabella Creek was completed in 1972.  “Santa Isabella” was a name used in many variations throughout the Southwest.  Exactly which Santa Isabella Creek served as Ellis’ subject is unknown.  The vibrant yellow Aspen trees, as well as Ellis’ own history, suggest that his inspiration lies somewhere in Northern New Mexico or Southern Colorado.

Ellis was a respected citizen of Santa Fe, where he had lived and worked since 1919. Shortly after his arrival, he joined with Willard Nash, Jozef Bakos, Walter Mruk, and Will Shuster to form one of Santa Fe's earliest artist groups, Los Cincos Pintores (The Five Painters). Although the members of the group built houses adjacent to one another on the Camino Del Monte Sol and maintained a close friendship all their lives, the association was one of convenience and shared interest, not one based on a common painting style.

Ellis' intimate knowledge of the land of the Southwest is reflected in his paintings. These won many prizes, beginning in 1924 when he received the Huntington Award for landscape at the Los Angeles County Museum. Primarily a self-taught artist, Ellis studied briefly at the Art Students League in New York in 1925. His admirers agree that one of the most important elements of his paintings, whatever their subject, is light—the dry, glowing light of the desert.  This emphasis on light is undoubtedly a result of both the physical character of the Southwest and Ellis' avowed admiration for the American Impressionists.

This extraordinary painting of Santa Isabella Creek illustrates Ellis’ impressionist landscapes and his adept use of color. His classic use of Aspens in the fall season, the dark brown rocks and the white frothing water contrast beautifully to produce a classic Ellis landscape.

Condition: original condition

Recommended Reading:  Serenading the Light: Painters of the Desert Southwest by David Clemmer.  This book is currently not available from Adobe Gallery

Provenance: from the collection of a gentleman from Denver, Colorado