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'Winter Hillside' | Original Painting | Chasing Winter Collection

$1,347.00

There is nothing quite like the feeling of slicing through fresh snow under a wide-open sky. I painted this piece right after a backcountry alpine tour near Breckenridge, and honestly, I was just trying to bottle up the pure joy of that day.

If you’ve ever been out in the Colorado high country, you know the view…those impossibly steep slopes and the classic, hardy spruce and pine trees just blanketed in winter. But my favorite part of the afternoon is always the way the light tricks your eyes as the sun starts to dip. Instead of just painting a block of white snow, I packed the late-day shadows with vibrant sprinkles of color including lots of soft pinks, deep blues, and teals.

This is a piece meant for anyone who leaves their heart in the mountains. It's bright, it's full of energy, and it’s a little reminder of what it feels like to be out there in the quiet of the woods.

Artwork Details:

  • Medium: Professional Golden & Liquitex heavy-body acrylics

  • Surface: Canvas

  • Size: 24 × 24 × 1.5 inches

  • Protection: Golden Isolation Coat + UV-protective Liquitex satin varnish

  • Signatures & Authentication: Hand-signed by the artist on back and front of the piece; includes an official Certificate of Authenticity.

Chasing Winter Collection

This year, the snow didn’t show up, so I went into the studio and made my own. This collection is a heartfelt attempt to conjure the snow I couldn’t find on the peaks. From electric blues to neon whites, these pieces are how I filled the cup that the mountains left empty. It’s my way of finding the healing quiet of the powder even when the ground stayed bare. It’s raw, it’s honest, and it’s the only way I knew how to survive a winter that wasn’t. I hope you can feel the soul of the winter I so damn wished for in every stroke. Take a look at other pieces in this Chasing Winter Collection here.

All original paintings are final sale. If you have questions about the artwork, reach out to me.

There is nothing quite like the feeling of slicing through fresh snow under a wide-open sky. I painted this piece right after a backcountry alpine tour near Breckenridge, and honestly, I was just trying to bottle up the pure joy of that day.

If you’ve ever been out in the Colorado high country, you know the view…those impossibly steep slopes and the classic, hardy spruce and pine trees just blanketed in winter. But my favorite part of the afternoon is always the way the light tricks your eyes as the sun starts to dip. Instead of just painting a block of white snow, I packed the late-day shadows with vibrant sprinkles of color including lots of soft pinks, deep blues, and teals.

This is a piece meant for anyone who leaves their heart in the mountains. It's bright, it's full of energy, and it’s a little reminder of what it feels like to be out there in the quiet of the woods.

Artwork Details:

  • Medium: Professional Golden & Liquitex heavy-body acrylics

  • Surface: Canvas

  • Size: 24 × 24 × 1.5 inches

  • Protection: Golden Isolation Coat + UV-protective Liquitex satin varnish

  • Signatures & Authentication: Hand-signed by the artist on back and front of the piece; includes an official Certificate of Authenticity.

Chasing Winter Collection

This year, the snow didn’t show up, so I went into the studio and made my own. This collection is a heartfelt attempt to conjure the snow I couldn’t find on the peaks. From electric blues to neon whites, these pieces are how I filled the cup that the mountains left empty. It’s my way of finding the healing quiet of the powder even when the ground stayed bare. It’s raw, it’s honest, and it’s the only way I knew how to survive a winter that wasn’t. I hope you can feel the soul of the winter I so damn wished for in every stroke. Take a look at other pieces in this Chasing Winter Collection here.

All original paintings are final sale. If you have questions about the artwork, reach out to me.

How This Piece Will Feel in Your Space

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How This Piece Will Feel in Your Space *

Imagine walking into your room and being hit with a burst of crisp mountain air and vibrant, playful energy.

Winter Hillside brings a bright, joyous atmosphere directly onto your wall. The electric, high-intensity cyan sky instantly lifts the room, while the soft pastel pinks, lavenders, and deep blues dancing across the snowpack fill your space with warm, late-day light. Balanced by bold, dark spruce silhouettes, this original canvas acts like a sunny window to a high-country slope—filling your home with clean, energetic color that makes every day feel a little brighter.

Living with Winter Hillside is an instant dose of pure, unbridled alpine joy.

Pausing in front of this piece takes you straight back to that unbeatable, heart-singing feeling of dropping into untracked powder under an open Colorado sky. It captures that magical hour when the dipping sun turns the winter shadows into a kaleidoscope of soft color, reminding you of the quiet magic hidden in the woods. It serves as an uplifting daily spark—a reminder to hold onto your playful spirit, chase the moments that make your heart race, and leave a little piece of your soul out in the wild.

Behind the Craftsmanship

Every original painting is a labor of love, built from the ground up using only professional, museum-quality materials. All pieces are crafted to endure for generations in your home.

  • The Foundation & Palette: I paint on premium, archival wood panels or heavy-duty canvas, using highly pigmented Golden and Liquitex professional acrylics. These paints are chosen for their incredible lightfastness and rich, heavy-body textures, allowing the vibrant, unexpected colors and abstract images to pop off the surface.

  • The Preservation Layer: Once the painting is complete, I apply a crucial archival step: a Golden Isolation Coat. This permanent, glossy, transparent layer seals the acrylic paint permanently, acting as a physical shield that protects the actual brushwork from the environment.

  • The Final Touch: To finish each piece, I apply a premium Liquitex Satin Varnish. This provides a beautiful, soft sheen that enhances the depth of the colorful landscape without distracting glare. It also offers vital UV protection and allows the surface to be safely cleaned in the future if needed.

  • Provenance & Authentication: Each original piece is hand-signed on the back for official authentication as well as my painted signature on the front of the piece. Your painting will also arrive with a separate, official Certificate of Authenticity to accompany the piece for your records. 

By investing in these specialized, multi-step preservation techniques, I ensure that the dreamlike energy, texture, and crisp brush strokes of your favorite painting remain as vivid and flawless decades from now as they were the day they left my mountain studio.

Meet The Artist

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Meet The Artist *

Howdy! I’m Caley Van Cleave a Colorado-based artist, lifelong rambler, and a self-proclaimed color maximalist. Inspired by the vastness of the American West, I take sketches and memories from my outdoor adventures and dial up the intensity—bringing the hidden purples of a sunrise snowbank and the electric joy of the wild straight to the canvas.

From my home base at 9,000 feet in Silverthorne, CO, or out on the road in my Airstream, I paint to capture the emotional impact of rugged mountain sunshine and red clay canyons. If it’s bright, bold, and celebrates our stunning natural world, I’m enamored by it.

You won’t find any beige here. I bring the ridiculous, joyful color combinations of our wild spaces directly to the canvas so you can celebrate a world of beautiful, vibrant adventure right in your own space.

LEARN MORE

Where To Buy In Real Life

2026 Breckenridge Fine Arts Festival

July 2, 3, and 4th - Breckenridge, Colorado

August 6, 7, and 8th - Breckenridge, Colorado

2026 Boulder Art Festival

September 5th and 6th - Pearl Street Mall - Boulder, Colorado (Labor Day Weekend)

2026 Fall Arts Invitational at Cheesman Park

October 3rd and 4th - Cheesman Park - Denver, Colorado

Come say howdy in person! I’d love to meet you and share these delightful contemporary landscape paintings with you in real life (IRL for the win!).

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