Fred Holcomb

"Padilla 2"  2011  oil on canvas  60" x 68"

"Pastures of Plenty"  2011  oil on canvas  40" x 56"

"Flats"  2010  mixed media on canvas  36" x 48"

"Heartland"  2011  oil on canvas  40" x 48"

"Sunday Drive"  2011  oil on canvas  40" x 56"

Depicting the American landscape as seen from the road is not a new idea. But it is a solid one, handled here with tremendous effectiveness by Fred Holcomb who's work is on display this month at Linda Hodges gallery in Seattle. As soon as there were cars there were people who tried to take them across the country. But it wasn't until much later, especially after the interstate highway system was in place, that our perception of open spaces became almost synonymous with the blurred landscape hurtling past beyond our car windows. Driving through the flat landscapes of the western deserts, or the cornfields of Nebraska or the Florida Panhandle on roads that never veer an inch off course as far as the eye can see is a singular experience that seems to define the long American road trip. For some these high speed vistas seem singularly empty and devoid of interest, but of course this is not the case and Fred Holcomb looks lovingly on the infinite variation that these flat vistas can present.
You can see more of his "American Dream" paintings as well as other landscapes and more experimental and abstract works on his website: http://fredholcomb.net/