LeConte Stewart (1891–1990)
Winter, 1940
Oil on board
16 × 20 in.
LeConte Stewart captures the quiet solemnity of a snow-covered Utah valley beneath the Wasatch Mountains. In Winter, painted in 1940, Stewart’s signature use of cool violet shadows and silvery blues evokes the heavy stillness of a rural landscape hibernating beneath snow. The distant rooftops of farmhouses peek through the trees, their presence subdued beneath layers of frost, while the foreground remains open and untouched—symbolic of both solitude and resilience.
A master of American Regionalism, Stewart often painted en plein air, directly observing the subtle effects of light and atmosphere. This work exemplifies his ability to distill emotion and place into a deceptively simple composition, rooted in the everyday poetry of rural life.
