Lee Baldwin visits Fred Hambly

As Shadows Fall

By Lee Baldwin

Much of what painter Fred Hambly seeks to convey through his Western scenes is expressed in a single canvas. The title, Shadows Fall from Trees, arose from a lyric by the Moody Blues' John Lodge:

Mystery spread its cloak across the sky, we'd lost our way
Shadows fell from trees, they knew why

The verse also makes reference to "a path lost for years," a strong connection for Hambly: he seeks to preserve in his painting the scenes and lifestyle of the Old West. It's a conscious effort, for Hambly does not want to see those times fade away. And the message comes across—viewers sometimes recall the textures of rope and leather, the scent of sage and horse, as if the senses are called to life beneath Hambly's brush.

Hambly's influences mirror the times that his canvases depict: the French romantics Théodore Géricault and Georges Seurat, Diego Rivera, Frederick Remington, and James Reynolds. With the exception of Reynolds (b. 1926), these artists worked chiefly in the mid-1800s or before. All can be classed as Impressionists or Romantics, and their influence on Hambly is as clear as any brand.

Of Reynolds, Hambly says, "This man is really a painter. He is very loose and free." And if Hambly feels any goal about his technique, it is to work faster, to create the scene and distill the moment with less detail and fewer strokes.

A fifth-generation Arizona native, Hambly has portrayed the cowboy and horse in his art since childhood. The West is in his blood, and he comes by this heritage honestly: his great-great grandfather was Sheriff of Tucson in 1867. With a fine arts degree from the University of Arizona and propelled by the giant shadows of Remington, Reynolds, and Rivera, Hambly has presented his work in galleries and juried shows from Laguna Beach, California to Cody, Wyoming. His canvases hang in Arizona galleries as well as collections throughout the country. He is a regular figure at juried shows throughout the United States, including the Mountain Oyster Club's Western Art Show in Tucson.

In college, his counselors politely informed Hambly that it would be risky trying to make a living as an artist, so he enjoyed teaching high school art as a profession. Those times were in Hambly's words a golden age, as mining money provided substantial portions of the school budget. There were several art teachers on staff, and no shortage of supplies.

Uninterested in scenes of natural grandeur, Hambly's focus is the momentary drama of an ordinary day, man and horse at work in open country, coping with whatever the elements deliver. His scenes are dramatic, often using high-contrast chariscouro to pull foreground figures from a depth of darks and bring the light to focus on a single, story-telling instant. We witness the simple moments of everyday heroism, valiant defeat, and animal nobility.

Consider the shadow work in Shadows Fall from Trees. Here, shadows crossing the forms of horse and rider imply the presence of objects beyond the canvas. Within the darkest shadows there is always color, in keeping with an Impressionist dictum that there's no such thing as black. The color and direction of the light suggest the warmth of late afternoon, and this is borne out in the fatigue of the rider's face. In this image as so many others, Hambly expresses the partnership of man and horse, and in doing so conveys the dirt, noise, and hard work that are part of life on the trail.


Hambly's technique follows the classic approach. Beginning with a pencil or charcoal sketch, he adds a stain or wash using burnt umber thinned with turpentine to lay in the larger darks. He then paints the entire canvas with the complement of the colors that will be used in the final painting. Finally he works over these layers in the actual colors.

Complementary colors have the effect of making one another appear brighter when placed side by side. By painting a color over its (dry) complement, an effect of depth and vibrance is achieved. This is because light actually penetrates through the color layers before reflecting back to the eye, and a subtle blending of color occurs as it travels through the layers of paint.

Hambly mixes his oils with equal parts of damar varnish, linseed oil, and turpentine. He paints 'thin to fat,' meaning he begins with thin washes and stains for his underpainting, using thicker paint for the finish layers. Unlike other painters who wait up to a year to apply the final varnish, Hambly feels comfortable with a thin coat after just a few weeks.
Professing no learned artistic thesis, Frederick Hambly is a straightforward man, an artist with a simple mission: to make the Old West live on for those who seek out his work. You can see Hambly canvases at:

Artistic Images of Prescott Gallery
123 South Cortez St., Prescott, AZ
928 778 5155

Windrush Gallery
411 Hwy 179, Sedona, Arizona
(928) 282-7676

Rosequist galleries
3001 E. Skyline Drive, #109. Tucson, Arizona
520 577-7551

Karin Newby Gallery
19 Tubac Road, Tucson, Arizona
520 398 9662