Artist finds expression through landscapes

Painter Mike Lewis owns the Mission Gallery and Coffee House on Santa Fe Avenue and Fifth Street in Grants and has many of his paintings on display and for sale there. [Photo by John A. Bowrsmith/Independent]

By Jim Maniaci
Cibola County Bureau

GRANTS — "I settled on pure landscape because it's what gave me the most satisfaction."

This is how Grants artist Mike Lewis explains the theme of his oil paintings 99 percent on linen, not the coarser texture of canvas which recently reappeared on the walls of The Mission, his downtown gallery, coffee bar and bed 'n breakfast guest house.

And the 53-year-old artist-businessman really likes the landscapes in the Cibola County region, with the Zuni Mountains, Mount Taylor, El Morro, El Malpais and Chaco Canyon from which to choose for settings.

After a 4-month exhibit by the California artist Kabu, Lewis and his wife Peggy decided it was time to again feature Lewis's landscapes. He said they normally rotate exhibits about three times a year.

His paintings range from $250 to $3,000 or so and the artist said that if he had to support himself entirely on their sales his existence would be marginal. That's why they opened the coffee bar, with imported javas, along with pastries, some homebaked by Peggy and some supplied. Visitors also are treated to a greeting by their friendly dog Chai.

Lewis said he has sold more than a dozen paintings this year, at about $1,500 at the high end.

His landscapes, he said, go well in homes as they can blend with many different styles of furniture and wall colorings.

Lewis said he began painting around 1975, but "I played around with art in high school and always had a real interest in it."

Although he attended North Texas State University in Denton for a while, he switched to a specialized institute, the Scottsdale Artists School in the posh Arizona city next to Phoenix. SAS offers short intense tutorial type courses.

They were "all day, each day, and you worked with professional artists," he said. "You would find one you liked, their work or their style. I liked the workshops. I could choose the type of artist I liked and learn from that. I've done that about seven times."

Of course he also spent five years as a commercial artist in the printing trades to further develop his technique.

Lewis said the finer texture of linen, compared to canvas, brings out the best of his technique.

"I'm kind of a mixture of tonalism and impressionism," he said.

With impressionism he said that as a person stands back and looks at the work it appears to have fine detail. But up close a person sees it is really loose strokes.

"The brain interprets what you've seen in the past," to create the impression, he said.

The tone of his works, as with many artists, he said, reflects the seasons more blues in the colder months, with autumn unveiling reds, yellows and oranges. In the spring and summer, more reds and greens bring out different tones.

Lewis hinted he prefers the summers since the days are longer and an artist can start earlier in the day.

But in the end, he admits, "The painting reflects the time of year, really."

When he is not painting, working with area elementary schools on their art programs, or helping his wife with the business, Lewis will be found taking part in a relatively new career. Since he ran in the spring mayoral race on a tourism-retirement industry platform, Mayor Joe Murrietta appointed him, with the Grants City Council's concurrence, to complete a term on the city's Lodger's Tax Board.

"A lot of people come to this area to see El Morro, El Malpais or Chaco Canyon. Then they go visit Santa Fe and Gallup. This area is increasingly more popular with people from all around the world," Lewis said.

He added, "The history of the whole western United States is so intriguing. It has a unique quality, as shown in the movies and books ... the whole mystique of the cowboys and Native Americans. A lot of people come here just to see for themselves. And of course our climate is outstanding."

He feels his little 8-in. by 10-in. paintings can capture some of that mystique, but it requires constant work. Sometimes, too, he likes one of his small scenes so well he will do a larger version.

Lewis said if he had any advice for aspiring young artists it would that they need the discipline to develop longevity, perseverance and to keep an open mind about their art so they can continue to grow.

"But the best advice I ever got was to paint every day," he concluded, as he returned to his easel to apply more strokes to one of the larger paintings he was basing on his original smaller version.

To contact reporter Jim Maniaci in Grants, telephone 285-6184 or (505) 870-7775 (cellular).