Our Third Featured Artist

Phil Epp

from Newton, Kansas, U.S.A.

scroll down for Flint Hills photos

Only 3% of the Tallgrass Prairie in America remains, but developers want to build 1000 giant turbines on the high ridges of the Flint Hall. For more information about this threat, and the danger to the rare prairie chicken, go to www.protecttheflinthills.org

November 2010 update:

Go to Phil's website for more photographs of this and other sculptures (left) as well as more new and stunning paintings.
www.philepp.com

The Last Mesa

July 17 2009 update - new book about Flint Hill Mustangs

Horses and building storm	Phil Epp was born near Henderson, Nebraska. After attending Bethel College he taught art for 30 years in Newton . He is an established south western artist, and he has had work in galleries in Santa Fe, Taos New Mexico, Chicago, Illinois, Kansas City, Missouri and Tubac, Arizona. Recently he has has particiapated in several large-scale public art projects.
Flint Hill landscape	Phil lives near the town of Newton with his wife Karen, who is an art teacher, and they have two children (now grown up) three horses and a dog. Much of his work is inspired by the large open skies of the Flint Hills, not far from where they live.
Elevator in the snow	Phil`s paintings are characterised by low horizon lines, with the sky being the dominant feature of the painting and landscape - as it is in the Flint Hills. He works only in acrylics and etching medium, and likes to work fairly large. Most paintings range in size from 24 x 30 ins to 36 x 48 ins. Sketches and photos are taken on location, but paintings evolve in the studio.
Prairie sky	Phil seldom tries to show a specific time and place as many landscape painters do, but rather his work is a composite of actual and imagined locations and prairie icons that add mystery and characters to the scene. Sometimes that icon may simply be a cloud.

Tornado	Flint Hill horses (detail)	Windy day	Storm on the plains
Road in snow	Lone House	Bull and storm	Windmill and storm

Sculpture, Public Art, Etchings

Phil Epp during construction of the sculpture	The Blue Sky Interactive Sculpture This 20 ft by 30 ft sculpture was a collaborative project with ceramists Terry Corbett and Conrad Snider. "The sculpture is intended to be a celebration of sky and space, a universal icon of hope and wonder, which is currently being threated by plans to construct towering industrial wind complexes in many of the most beautiful and vulnerable locations in our state." Phil Epp	The Blue Sky Sculpture You can see more of his public art on his website
	Original prints (example on left) and other examples of Phil`s work can be seen on his website www.philepp.com You can also see a selection of his Mustang photos (example to right), look at other regional art, and read an article about him on the Links page

Photos of the Flint Hills

Horses on the ridgeline

"Most of the photos shown below were taken in the same general area, but the views are typical of the Flint Hills throughout the state. The large wind complexes will destroy any landscape, but they will be especially destructive to this last vista of native prairie." Phil Epp

Flint rock
and passing clouds.

Cattle grazing	Prairie pond	Native grasses and flowers in summer	Teter Rock.
Wild mustangs	Bald eagle flying over	These last three extra photos were taken by Phil on the Flint Hills last year	More wild mustangs

Carrifran Hill by Sheila Mullen

Scottish Power are also planning to build turbines at Harestanes, in Dumfries and Galloway, where another of our artists, Sheila Mullen lives.
You can see her work in the Gallery and also at www.sheila mullen.co.uk

A poster designed by Phil Epp, showing wild mustangs running way down below beneath the giant turbines.

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