Mountain Landscape Painting by Ben Turner

Twentieth-century New Mexico artists were enthralled with the landscape of the mountain areas, the light intensity of the higher altitudes, and the majesty of the views. Artists from Albuquerque, Santa Fe, and Taos captured wonderful views of the area in various seasons. In this oil painting, artist Ben Turner chose a rugged mountain landscape to paint.

In front and center is a group of deep green mountain pine trees perched on a hill, alone except for a few boulders at its base. A little deeper into the landscape is another group of pine trees. The bare earth color of the hill is backed by golden aspen trees off to the right and mountains deeper in the background filled with golden aspens. In the far background are mountains covered with green. Majestic storm clouds are building up over the mountains in typical afternoon fashion.

The painting is signed in the lower center of the canvas. It is beautifully framed in a white gold, hand carved wood frame.

Ben Turner (1912-1966) born in Gallup, New Mexico, was a descendant of the famous English marine painter Joseph Mallord William Turner. Ben Turner specialized in depicting landscapes with cottonwoods, aspens, and adobe scenes, particularly in and around Santa Fe. Turner's artistic career began in high school, and he later worked as a cartoonist, creating the daily comic strip "Jerry'n Jake," distributed to numerous newspapers in the Southwest.

Turner pursued formal art studies at the University of New Mexico and the Chicago Art Institute, further refining his skills under the instruction of notable artists like Blumenschein, Oscar Berninghaus, Couse, Higgins, and Sharp. During World War II, he served as the staff artist for the Air Corps and established the 15th Air Force Staff Artists. His wartime experiences, including battle scenes in Bari, Italy, and the Ploesti Fields of Romania, were captured in portraits and paintings, some of which were featured in Look and Life magazines.

Ben Turner's artworks have been exhibited at the University of New Mexico Fine Arts Galleries in Albuquerque. His paintings are part of collections at the U.S. Library of Congress in Washington, D.C., the Fine Arts Museum in Santa Fe, New Mexico, and the New Mexico State Fair in Albuquerque. Additionally, Turner established studios in Redstone, Colorado; Santa Fe and Taos, New Mexico; and Mazatlán, Mexico unitl his death.

Condition: very good condition

Provenance: this Mountain Landscape Painting by Ben Turner is from an Arizona estate.

Recommended Reading: Paintings of the Southwest by Arnold Skolnick

TAGS: Western Art, Oscar Berninghaus, Couse, Sharp