Approaching Storm, oil, 32 x 40 in.

“This style of painting centers around the careful observation of light, strong drawing and modeling form,” LaRock explains. “I strive to inhabit the imagined space I am creating behind the canvas to create a tangible quality to the people, land and atmosphere within them. I tend to paint in layers, which allows me to creep up to the effects I am after while juggling all the complex elements and pursuing wonderful details, but not at the expense of the composition as a whole.”

Among the Cottonwoods, oil, 30 x 30 in.

For LaRock’s upcoming show Passages, featuring around 10 new paintings and hosted at Maxwell Alexander Gallery, the artist alludes to both the movement of the characters in his new paintings, as well as his own journey as he continues to explore subjects of the West.

Among the Cottonwoods, 12 x 14 in.

Painted in both small and large versions, show piece Among the Cottonwoods depicts a glowing fall scene. The artist shares: “Years ago I came across an E. Martin Hennings painting called Passing By that I found really inspiring. I loved the scraggly, majestic cottonwood with its bold, backlit yellow foliage, completely surrounding the riders and bathing them in its warm glow. I knew I had to try my hand at a similar motif one day. Then in late October 2021, Maxwell Alexander Gallery organized an artist trip to Bluff, Utah, which happened to be exactly at the peak color for the cottonwoods all along the San Juan River. It was wonderful. I spent time hiking along the riverbank at different times of day to observe the light and the character of the different trees with this painting in mind.”

Passages, oil, 34 x 30 in.

LaRock adds that the model for this piece is a young Apache woman in camp dress. “Her aunt, a skilled seamstress in the San Carlos community, made the dress,” he says. “I thought this moment of connection between her and her horse, along with the bold colors of the dress against the tree, struck just the right harmony.”

Desert Shepherdess, oil, 32 x 40 in.

In another highlight, Passage, titled after the show, LaRock includes multiple subjects, a new component that the artist plans on including in future paintings. “I enjoy the challenge of it but also the interesting narrative possibilities,” he explains. “It was fun to add the small riders in the distance of this piece as it maybe suggests this is a group of people on the move together. The riders also provide a nice sense of scale to the background, a device I always love seeing in my favorite landscape painters like Thomas Moran.”

Texas Sun, oil, 20 x 16 in.

In yet another striking composition, Approaching Storm, we see a rider and horse among the Western landscape. “This horse was really impressive. I was immediately excited to paint him and was captivated by this dynamic gesture between him and the rider,” says LaRock. “The horse’s musculature reminded me of some of the most epic equestrian paintings of the past. I felt the action of the subjects needed to be matched with an active sky and dramatic lighting. A narrative also emerged in my mind, that perhaps they got caught too far out from home and are trying to make it back before the storm moves in and the sun sets.”