Desert Spring

 Wow -- today's April Fool's Day. Well, as far as I'M concerned, it's April but I ain't no fool!!

I just finished a painting, Desert Spring, which seemed especially appropriate for this time of year. It depicts a scene in Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument in southern Arizona. My focus was on the distant mountain (don't know if it has a name or not). After I varnish it, I'll probably offer it for sale on my website -- links are below under my signature).

On another note, I'm hoping to be able to travel to San Antonio, TX in time to see the total solar eclipse. However, at this writing, it seems possible that much of Texas will be overcast and maybe even raining. This would obviously obscure the view of the sun which would render the trip a bust. We'll see in the next couple of days what the weather forecast says, but we may end up canceling the trip. 😢

Anyway, here's the painting. Enjoy!

Mark Junge
www.MarkJunge.com or www.SouthwestSpaces.com

Commission -- Joshua Tree Sunset

Just finished my second painting for the year and my first commission in a long time!

(The sun isn't as solid white as it appears in the picture -- my paintings can be hard to photograph!)

Anyway, the painting is 22" x 28" / 55.9cm x 71.1cm -- larger than I've been doing in a long time! Joshua Tree Sunset is a scene in the National Park of that name, one of my favorite places on the planet.

Enjoy!!

Mark Junge

www.MarkJunge.com or www.SouthwestSpaces.com

A Joshua Tree Painting

FINALLY!!! I finished my first painting for 2024!!

This is a view I saw many years ago from the Boy Scout Trailhead in Joshua Tree National Park, California. I haven't decided on a title yet, but I'll come up with something. When I do, I'll offer it on my website. The size is 8" x 10" / 20cm x 25cm.

Enjoy! 

Mark Junge

www.MarkJunge or www.SouthwestSpaces.com

Crater Range

Well, another year has come and gone...and so quickly! How is that happening?

I managed to finish only one painting in December. It seems like it took me forever -- but not because it was especially hard, but I had trouble making decisions about it; plus, there were lots of interruptions AND I wasn't feeling very motivated.

But here it is: Crater Range, an area between Gila Bend and Ajo, Arizona. It's a volcanic-looking area that features an Air Force bombing range on the other side of those mountains! (I never heard any bombs going off the times I visited there -- thankfully).

Crater Range         8" x 10"

The size is 8" x 10" / 20cm x 25cm. Enjoy!

Mark Junge
www.MarkJunge.com or www.SouthwestSpaces.com

Autumn Splendor

It's no secret that my favorite season of the year is autumn, when trees seem to be huge flowers that bloom in radiant colors.

Autumn Splendor is the latest painting that shows my idea of what fall looks like (which it doesn't in the desert where I live!). Complete with some mallards, my favorite species of duckies.

The location is imaginary -- but it's a place I'd love to see. Enjoy!!

Mark Junge

www.MarkJunge.com or www.SouthwestSpaces.com

Hawaiian Skies - White-Tailed Tropicbird

White-Tailed Tropicbird is (sort of) my latest painting. I actually finished it earlier this year, but I couldn't decide if I was keeping the distant hills and palms or replace it with blue sky. I ended up leaving it as it was. Size is 8" x 10" / 20cm x 25cm.

I was surprised to learn that seagulls tend not to occur in the Hawaiian Islands. Apparently, they don't care much for the food they find there. Thus, they only stop by temporarily if they're migrating.

But the tropicbirds fill that ecological niche!

There is also a red-tailed species. I'll have to paint one of those birdies sometime, too.

Enjoy!!

Mark Junge

www.MarkJunge.com or www.SouthwestSpaces.com

Autumn Glory

Autumn Glory is my newest painting. This is one of the peaks in the Elk Range in Colorado -- near Aspen, and the same mountain range that includes the fabled Maroon Bells. I think this mountain is Pyramid Peak, although I'm not sure about that. The size is 11" x 14" / 28cm x 36cm. I may do a reshoot of the painting, since this one didn't come out that great.

I had considered adding some wildlife to the scene -- some mallard ducks or maybe some deer (I DID see a buck and doe together when I was there), but then I decided -- naaahhh. I didn't feel like it!

Enjoy!

Mark Junge

www.MarkJunge or www.SouthwestSpaces.com