Holt's artistic talent and independent approach to life were inherent gifts from his parents. Despite the fact that his mother, also a painter, died when he was only six, Holt explains that the hours they spent together in her studio allowed him to absorb much of her skill and determination. "I primarily associate her memory with a feeling of comfort, and I get this same sensation of warmth and completion whenever I am painting," he confides.
As a youth, Holt's father, an inventor and scientist, provided a comfortable life for his family in Mina, Nevada. "Dad took my mother's death very hard, so he left his traditional job behind and for the next four years, he and I traveled together in an old truck exploring some of the most beautiful and unspoiled areas between Canada and Mexico. My mother may have given me a heads-up on painting, but it was my father who imbued me with a sense of personal connectedness to the land."
Holt's life began to stabilize around the age of ten. His father remarried, and the family settled in Pasadena, California, where Holt became involved with the Boys Club of America. Noticing the youth's talent for drawing, the organization brought him into contact with the Pasadena Museum of Art, who arranged for him to receive a four-year scholarship to study with Russian sculptor Alex Kruschoff. "Dad was a loving person whose gift to me was shaping my value system, but Alex filled an even more intimate role as my artistic father because he was connected with what I loved to do."
Ever a restless soul, Holt left home at fifteen, engaging in an odyssey to find himself until the Army selected him for a two-year tour of duty in Germany. Following his discharge, he struck out on his own, working as a commercial artist in Los Angeles. He quickly tired of the demanding schedules and the restrictions on his creativity, and left the company two years later determined to try his hand at fine art. Holt headed north with only his guitar and a paint box as companions. Living out of his truck, he retraced the paths he and his father had shared long ago, selling his paintings on the road as he went.
By the mid-1980s, the artist felt it was time to settle down. Now married, his wife Trish's job brought them to Silver City, New Mexico, the area he has called home ever since. "I hated the region at first because I was used to the lushness of the Northwest. However, memories of growing up in the Nevada desert began to come back - the weather, the animals and the plants - and suddenly the whole essence of that environment began to fill my mind." Since that time, the untamed beauty of the Gila River Valley has become Holt's primary subject.
Wayne Usrey, owner of Studio W in Ruidoso, New Mexico, relates that, "Holt was the gallery's best selling artist in 2005. I believe people are attracted to his paintings because they are truly able to see the Gila region through the artist's eyes." Usrey explains that rather than simply hiking or driving to a site, Holt often spends weeks at a time camping in the Gila Wilderness capturing in memory and sketches remote areas not often seen by the ordinary visitor. Holt adds, "For me, painting has always been a spiritual experience, and the mood of my work is determined by the mood of the land itself. When I am alone, I am best able to observe and understand what the land is saying to me personally."
Although painting on-site is the current vogue among artists, Holt chooses not to label his work "plein air painting" preferring to simply say he paints outside. Finding an area which pleases him, the artist makes several 16" x 20" oil preliminaries which he then takes back to his studio as references for his larger painting. "I sketch (paint) on-site primarily for color because even the best photograph will not give you the same colors that your eye sees when you are there. I take photos as well, often in black and white, using these as a reference for details which might add to the overall composition I desire." These are primarily landscapes although he may occasionally include a barn or a few animals. The majestic white-barked sycamore trees native to the area are another favorite. "Because they only grow in the canyons, to me the sycamores symbolize a mother's gift to her children and a lesson in gratitude for the bounty in our lives. Their white bark reflects the colors, thus becoming a mirror to their surroundings which makes them great fun to paint."
A very private person who prefers to eschew the fellowship of traditional arts organizations, Holt markets most of his work via his web site or through his only other public venue, the Belleza Gallery in Bisbee, Arizona, which is owned and operated by the Women's Transition Center. "I feel more socially responsible when I can connect my business with helping people," he quietly affirms.
"When it comes to my life in general, I'm a very passionate person and feeling things this strongly makes the need for self expression even more important. I see my paintings as contemplative, for I look inward almost as much as outward when I create. But most of all, I try to remain true to the natural beauty I see not putting my own signature on Mother Nature."
|
