In the autumn of 2024, British painter James Hart Dyke set out to Yosemite National Park to paint directly from life in one of the most iconic wilderness landscapes on Earth. From the base of El Capitan to the summit trails beneath Half Dome, from the quiet groves of giant sequoias to the open valley floor, Dyke carried his paints and easel across the terrain, responding to the light and scale of the Sierra Nevada in real time.
Dyke first rose to prominence when he was invited to serve as the official artist to His Majesty King Charles III (then Prince of Wales) on Royal Tours around the world. This early appointment set the stage for a career defined by immersive expeditions and a dedication to capturing landscapes that are both majestic and fragile. His work has since taken him from the Himalayas to Patagonia and Mont Blanc, earning him international recognition as one of the foremost mountain and wilderness painters of his generation.
In this Yosemite series, Dyke’s distinctive brushwork conveys the monumentality of the granite walls as well as the quiet intimacy of the forests and meadows. Following in the artistic lineage of Albert Bierstadt and the conservation vision of John Muir, these paintings invite viewers to encounter Yosemite not simply as a place, but as an experience of scale, light, and wonder.
