2024 Artist Workshops

Dan Young was born in Denver, and grew up in western Colorado.

 “ Camping and fishing through out the Rocky Mountains as a child, has been a strong influence on me and my work,” Young stated. He attended Colorado Institute of Art, hoping to find a direction in art. After graduation he moved to Dallas to pursue the commercial art field. Even with a successful Illustration career, the landscape was always calling him back. In 1989, he returned to Colorado to begin painting full time. Young enjoys painting the rural life of the west, the ranches that dot the mountain valleys and river bottoms. He states,“ Though I’m a landscape painter, I like introducing hints of man’s presence in the landscape. Sometimes I feel I’m in a race to paint a disappearing way of life. It’s hard to watch so many of the family farms and ranches being swallowed up by development.” 

Young clings strongly to the importance of painting from life. He feels painting from life was the most important stepping stone for his career. Most days you can find him painting along a backroad or beside a mountain lake.

“I still spend about 50 percent of my time painting on location. That’s what drew me to painting, the love of being out in nature and trying to accurately capture it on canvas. I still get excited when I head out for a day of painting. It doesn’t matter if I paint in Alaska or out my front door, it helps keep me fresh to paint on location,” he says.

For more about Dan Young, please visit: www.danyoungstudio.com

Barbara Jaenicke loved drawing and painting as a child, but it wasn’t until her early teens where her stubborn determination launched her artistic journey. Barbara’s earliest training was with the late Juanita Crosby in Bordentown, NJ, who instilled a strong initial foundation of painting basics during her high school and college years. Eventually earning her Bachelor of Arts degree in 1986 from The College of New Jersey, Barbara focused her early career on Advertising and Design. Though there wasn’t much time for painting during her time spent in advertising and marketing communications, she always knew she would eventually continue her original artistic passion, and was able to pursue her fine art career in 2002; “full steam ahead”.

Working in oil and pastel, Barbara strives to capture light-filled landscapes in a painterly, impressionist style. She holds signature memberships in various, highly-named societies and groups, and has accumulated a long list of awards, highlights and publications. Barbara continues to pursue her fine art career in Bend, Oregon, where she includes snow and mountains in her landscape subject matter. She is also a popular workshop instructor throughout the US, teaching workshops coast to coast each year.

“Painting isn’t just a job or hobby for me. It’s a passion. Maybe even an obsession. I try to paint experiences and emotions, rather than ‘things.’ To do this, I need to push beyond the basic mechanics of creating the work. No painting is ever easy for me. Each one challenges me to create the magic that goes beyond just a painting of a thing. That magic doesn’t always happen in every single attempt, but it’s those euphoric instances when the painting ‘hits’ that make it worth going through all of the painful ‘misses.’”

For more about Barbara Jaenicke, please visit: www.barbarajaenicke.com

Christopher Leeper has the extraordinary talent of being able to work in multiple mediums, each with great command. He has received acclaim, winning awards in all—his watercolor, acrylic and oil painting work. Whatever medium it takes, his goal is to share the moment of excitement and inspiration he has experienced with others. Leeper participates in national plein air events and maintains a full teaching schedule. He adds to his list of achievements the illustration of four children's books for the Smithsonian and the African Wildlife Foundation.

 Christopher Leeper is a full-time artist from Canfield, OH. He is the author of Realism in Watermedia, North Light. He has illustrated four children's books for the Smithsonian and the African Wildlife Foundation.  His work has been featured in several books and publications, including The Artist's Magazine, American Artist, Plein Air Magazine and Ohio Magazine. He is a member of the adjunct faculty in the Department of Art at Youngstown State University. He served as president of the Ohio Watercolor Society (2008-2012). Christopher graduated from Youngstown State University in 1988 with a BFA degree in graphic design.

"The wonder and blessing of it is,
that after 40 years or so,
I am still excited, inspired and curious.
That is a gift."

- Chris Leeper

For more about Chris Leeper, please visit: www.christopherleeper.com