Captain Kirk: Independence artist helms his Eastern Sierra watercolor starship
Dave Kirk, one of the area’s newer artists, only moved to the Owens Valley in 2001, but by that time, the Eastern Sierra and its spectacular scenery had already made a lasting impression on him. Primarily a self-taught painter, Kirk studied Art at The Ohio State University. “In 1990, I moved out west, spending most of that year hiking around the Eastern Sierra,” he recalled on his website. “During that period, two things became obvious to me: One was that I wanted to do some kind of work involving the outdoors. The other was that I wanted to begin painting the unbelievable landscapes unfolding before me, and eventually develop my art to a degree where I could earn an income from it. I wasn’t entirely sure how I should go about doing either!”
At Ohio State, Kirk said he studied basic structure, along with pencil drawing and sculpture. “We had also been exploring other mediums. I submitted some watercolors and my professor encouraged me to pursue it, he seemed to think I had an affinity for it. I just kind of took to it.”
He later took up formal study of watercolor painting at Mt. Hood Community College in Gresham, Ore. “Between 1995 until 2001, I was living on Mt. Hood and worked as a caretaker of Silcox Hut, a National Historic Monument.” Kirk said he’s also held a variety of jobs, including telemark ski instructor, mountain guide, and even as a location scout for movies. It was at about this time that he began to publicly show and sell his artwork.
“In some of my first attempts, I was kind of overwhelmed with detail,” he told The Sheet. “I later learned how to determine what detail was important, and there are certain strokes and techniques you can use … the viewer’s mind can fill in the rest of the details.”
Kirk works in other media, but prefers watercolors. “I’ve done some larger scale works and murals where I’ve used acrylics and so on, but what I like about watercolor is it’s very portable and very clean … no nasty solvents or chemicals.”
Because watercolor is basically just pigment and water, Kirk said it has a “capricious quality to it,” often creating its own patterns and colors once it’s applied to the canvas, and influencing the direction and tonality of the work.
“Studying the modern masters from the Impressionist through the Cubist eras and beyond, has given me insight in how to interpret the landscape in my own way,” Kirk said.
“From the mid-19th century to present, art has played a remarkable role in the movement to protect landscapes and the living things that reside therein,” he related. “One of my favorite quotes is by the great preservationist Aldo Leopold: ‘Our ability to perceive quality in nature begins, as in art, with the pretty. It expands through successive stages of the beautiful to values yet not captured by language.’” By day, Kirk works as an Inyo National Forest Wilderness Ranger, and also assists Lone Pine and the Bureau of Land Management with stewardship of the Alabama Hills. “I’m fortunate to be able to do my small part to protect the landscapes I work in.”
Happy to be part of the region’s burgeoning arts community, he also draws inspiration from the Eastern Sierra’s painters, photographers, sculptors and artists in other mediums.
Kirk is the featured artist for August and September at Thai Thai Restaurant in Bishop (inside the Airport building). The public is invited to a show opening reception on Wednesday, Aug. 10, from 5:30-7 p.m. In addition to Kirk’s artwork, guests can enjoy music, appetizers and refreshments. For more on Kirk and his art, visit www.dkirksworks.com.
