James Woodward's oil painting of an old mill that used to stand on Riverdale Road in Ogden, Utah exudes a wistfulness for the past. The old grist mill, taken down in 1997, was originally built in 1851. In its nearly 150 years of service, the mill changed hands several times, and in one of those sales, in the 1930s, it was given the name All-O-Wheat Cereal Company. In those days the mill produced a line of breakfast cereals as well as basic milled grains and animal feeds that fed the Intermountain West and beyond. Woodward paints the mill in its later years, when parts of the structure have fallen away and the tracks have been torn out. Despite its age, the building doesn't feel decrepit rather, it has a proud nostalgic feeling, with pastel yellows, greens, and blues giving the sense that time and memories have simply softened the mill and its surroundings.
James D. Woodward was raised in Jackson, Wyoming, where his grandfather homesteaded in the late 1800s. Woodward spent his youth hiking, fishing, and working outside in view of the magnificent Tetons. Woodward was a self-taught artist and said that becoming an artist always seemed a natural thing to do for someone raised in that beautiful country. He retired and moved to Utah in 1977 where he continued to be inspired by the stunning landscape. He spent years studying contemporary landscape painters and attended painting workshops led by landscape artist, Jim Wilcox, and wildlife artist, Tucker Smith. Woodward's paintings have taken a host of awards including one Best of Show at the Utah State Fair and the Grand Prize at the Salt Lake County Fair.
http://artatthemain.com/artist/jim-woodward
