The Grand Canyon like You've Never Seen It

Swedish born landscape artists, Gunner Widforss, has a large collection of works on display at the Museum of Northern Arizona. The exhibit features paintings from MNA’s permanent collection as well as on loan.

I visited the exhibit last Thursday on a day that I nanny in town. Taking a 10 year old with me made the experience so vibrant. Her recognition of his talent was very refreshing. She would rush over to a painting that featured water and the reflection of trees, and proclaim, “Is this a photograph?” It was true. His paintings are incredibly realistic. He has an uncanny talent of painting the natural world.

We marveled over his paintings of the Grand Canyon. We commented on the way that if you look at the Canyon in real life, the view fades and fogs in the distance. Widforss created a scene where the distant points of canyon walls were just as clear and detailed as the foreground. We wondered how it was possible that he sat there and contemplated the Canyon for so long while painting.

If you get a chance, see this exhibit. It is different that other landscape painting exhibitions. Widforss was a gifted painter and his work is definitely worth seeing. To find out more information, call MNA at 928-774-5213. The exhibit will be on display through June 1, 2010.