Artist Notes: This painting is the second in a series of homesteads on the western prairie. As in the first painting, “Mormon Homestead I,” this painting continues the theme of isolation and abandon buildings of what was once a working farm or ranch. My interest is to give a feeling of the vast open space of the prairie through composition, a dramatic sky, and the use of pink along the horizon and yellow  gold bar running along the bottom of the painting. The two paintings were inspired by The Mormon Row Historic District is located at the southeast corner of Grand Teton National Park. Mormon homesteads represent the communal, agrarian frontier settlements established throughout the American West starting in 1847. Unlike individualistic homesteaders, Mormon pioneers built clustered, irrigated farming villages to survive harsh environments. Today, these historical footprints remain preserved, with some functioning as National Parks, heritage sites, and living history.

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