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“Reaching the Pass” by renowned Alaskan artist Fred Machetanz - $2,500
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by renowned Alaskan artist
Fred Machetanz (American, 1908-2002)
A Limited Edition Iditarod lithograph print
released in March of 1985
A spectacular double matted, framed, signed and numbered (#139/1049) sold out lithograph print in excellent condition, measuring 31” tall x 43” wide
There were 1049 prints in the edition,
equal to the number of miles from
Anchorage to Nome, Alaska!
The print is signed by Fred Machetanz and
10 Iditarod champions:
1. Dick Wilmarth—1973 winner
2. Carl Huntington—1974 winner
3. Emmitt Peters--1975 winner
4. Gerald Riley--1976 winner
5. Rick Swenson--
1977, 1979, 1981, 1982, 1991 winner
6. Dick Mackey--1978 winner
7. Joe May--1980 winner
8. Rick Mackey--1983 winner
9. Dean Osmar--1984 winner
10. Libby Riddlles--1985 winner
The first woman to win the Iditarod
The artwork depicts a sled dog team straining toward the crest of a mountain pass, just before the musher steps onto the runners for the swift descent downhill. Signed in graphite by the artist, lower right, and by ten mushers including Dick Wilmarth (1973), Carl Huntington (1974), Emmitt Peters (1975), Gerald "Jerry" Riley (1976), Rick Swenson (1977, 1979, 1981, 1982, 1991), Dick Mackey (1978), Joe May (1980), Rick Mackey (1983), Dean Osmar (1984), and Libby Riddles (1985).
The Iditarod is an Alaskan dog sled race over 1,049 miles of the roughest, wildest, most beautiful terrain Mother Nature has to offer - jagged mountain ranges, frozen rivers, dense forests, desolate tundra, and miles of windswept Arctic coast.
“As Alaska's preeminent artist,
Fred Machetanz (February 20, 1908 – October 6, 2002) traveled a long trail from his first one-man show in 1961.
He was an Alaskan painter and illustrator who specialized in depictions of Alaskan scenes, people and wildlife. His paintings and stone lithographs have been exhibited around the world. He pictured the Alaska he first encountered in the village of Unalakleet. It was there that he first established a bond with the land and its people that lasted nearly 50 years. He died in 2002 at age 94”
The dramatic colors of Alaska are the colors of Machetanz's palette: The pinks and golds of northern sunlight, the blues and greens of snow and ice, the grays and creams of polar bear fur. Machetanz credited his classic transparent oil technique with capturing "Alaska's kaleidoscope of color" and he painted portraits of an Alaska in what he called its "romantic period" between the gold rush and the oil boom. He chronicled the traditional Eskimo lifestyle as it was rapidly changing but not yet vanished, and the constantly changing resplendency of the Alaskan landscape. One of Alaska's preeminent artists, Machetanz traveled a long trail from his first one-man show in 1961 through his passing in 2002. His paintings and stone lithographs have been exhibited around the world, included in numerous permanent collections and published in multiple books. His awards range from 1977 Alaskan of the Year and a seat in the Alaska Press Club Hall of Fame to three honorary doctorates. Machetanz pictured the Alaska he first encountered in the village of Unalakleet; it was there that he first established a bond with the land and its people that has lasted nearly fifty years. As the patterns of light and dark and the luminous effect of his Renaissance glazing techniques became the trademarks of a Machetanz painting, the spirit of Machetanz has remained a trademark of Alaska. He once said "If anyone viewing my work has felt the beauty, the thrills and the fascination I have known in Alaska, then I have succeeded in what I set out to do."