2011 Featured Artist Dennis Rhoades

Longtime Evergreen resident Dennis Rhoades has been selected as the featured artist for the 21st Annual Golden Fine Arts Festival.

Rhoades is an acclaimed landscape artist best known for his commanding brush strokes and vibrant colors. His painting "Red Rocks" is featured on the Festival's fine art poster which can be purchased for $20.00 at the Festival, and through the Golden Chamber of Commerce and many area merchants.

For 45 years, Rhoades worked as a studio artist, designing logos and ads. Twelve years ago, he decided to focus solely on fine art ppaiting and and in that time, has won numerous awards and was even named a Master Pastelist by the Pastel Society of America. This is an incredible honor as there are only 160 artists in the world to be named Master Pastelist due to the rigorous standards set to achieve the distinction.

According to Rhoades, "I'm visually compelled by the interplay of shapes, values, patterns and colors. As I'm designing a painting, I gain new and deeper insight into the subject and surroundings as these elements combine. Pastels are incredibly vibrant and energizing to paint with. They are fun and messy and I like the feel of them in my fingers and the strokes I make with them on my board. I'm crazy about color and enjoy playing with analogous and complimentary colors as I paint."

Rhoades' paintings primarily feature the lanscapes of the Southwest and Western united States. A Kansas native, he and wife Jennis Rhoades have lived in Evergreen for the past 45 years. Rhoades will be available at the Golden Fine Arts Festival to meet with visitors and answer questions about his work.