Dana Aaberg
2008 Sweet Pea Contest Winner

Dana Aaberg was born on the way to Bozeman in the front seat of a Mercury station wagon on a cold winter morning in February. He grew up in Bozeman, attended local schools and went to MSU where he graduated with a degree in Professional Design. Aaberg has worked in Boston and Chicago as a designer and graphic artist. He presently maintains a design and art studio in the Emerson Cultural Center. He is a former oil painter and air brush artist, shows his work at local galleries and does occasional artwork for the Big Sky Journal. His work has been described as constantly changing, continually innovative and draws from a wide range of influences both contemporary and traditional.

Aaberg said, "It was a bit of a lark to enter the Sweet Pea Contest. I haven't entered the contest since just after I got out of art school and I don't want to tell you how long ago that was. I had an idea for it and thought it might be fun. I have a special affinity for the vital quality of flowers and red sweet peas seeemd a natural."

Besides having a special feeling for the organic nature of flowers he also has concentrated on horses as well as the figure for subject matter. A recent article in the travel section of the Los Angeles Times by Stephanie Simon described the artwork of Aaberg's horses as "so full of heat and motion I could almost hear them whinny." He has been described by Michelle Corriel in the Chronicle's At Home magazine as, "following the creative force of his soul, wherever it may take him."