Description

RIPARIAN RICHES by Stephen Lyman.  LIMITED EDITION PRINT Limited Edition of: 2500,Image Size: 46 1/2″w x 13 1/8″h.
Published: April 1993 Framed as shown from a private consignment.

 “Riparian” refers to the life zone along a waterway or a lake and the riches are all the life inhabiting that zone from beneath the dappled water to the foliage in treetops. “I wanted to do a very long, wide-angle view of a slow-moving river because I really enjoy painting crystal-clear water with reflections including the textures in the foliage on the opposite side of the river,” said artist Stephen Lyman. “I purposely shortened the view to include just a peek of the sky, because I wanted the viewer to feel this landscape intimately. There’s sand, lichen on boulders, leaves, trunks of trees, grasses, roots and many other things. It’s almost like a still life. Even the bird, a great blue heron, stands motionless in the water, waiting for a fish to come by for breakfast. I chose him because of his quiet and patient personality.”

About Stephen Lyman- Through Lyman’s art, you can travel into a wilderness very few have experienced. You can share the sensation of being in the true outdoors – exploring, discovering, studying and enjoying the all-encompassing beauty of unspoiled nature. Stephen Lyman was an explorer who specialized in painting the most elusive moments in nature. His inspiring work was inspired, in turn, by the writing and teachings of famous naturalist John Muir. “Muir wrote, ‘Climb the mountains and get their good tidings,’” Lyman said. “I know exactly what he meant.” Lyman’s love of the great outdoors stemmed from a childhood spent in the Pacific Northwest, where hiking in Snake River country was a regular family ritual. Lyman’s desire to share his admiration for the outdoors was strong, but he enrolled in the Art Center School of Design in Pasadena, California, to learn more about the commercial art field. He started his career as a commercial illustrator in Los Angeles and soon realized that the call of the wild was stronger than the lure of the city. Returning to Idaho, he spent two years exploring and developing his own style of painting. He continued to discover the wonders of the natural world and of living a natural lifestyle. “All my paintings have their origins in my experience and perception of beauty in the wilderness,” he said. Lyman’s first limited edition print was published by The Greenwich Workshop in 1983. In subsequent years, he was a frequent participant in the prestigious international “Birds in Art” show at the Leigh Yawkey Woodson Art Museum. He was invited to be “Artist of the Year” at the 1991 Pacific Rim Wildlife Art Show and then received the rare honor of being invited back as an “Encore Artist” at the 1995 event. Stephen Lyman actively shared the wonder of the natural world with a legion of collectors until his untimely death in 1996. He had been recently named one of the top artists in the country by U.S. Art magazine and his book, Into the Wilderness: An Artist’s Journey, was published to unanimous acclaim in the autumn of 1995.