Colorado artist Jared Hankins is excited to blend the history of the 10th Mountain division with his unique painting style in a new exhibit being hosted at Raitman Art Galleries in Vail Village. Growing up in the Centennial State, Jared Hankins had heard about the 10th Mountain Division, the famed winter warfare unit that trained south of Vail at Camp Hale and went on to fight pivotal battles in Italy during World War II.

“The 10th Mountain Division lore has always been tied to ski towns and has been a subject that I wanted to create a body of work around,” Hankins said. “Over the summer I had a show in Vail based on Ski Town Americana and I included a 10th Mountain Soldier below Lover’s Leap. The piece sold in the first few hours it was in the gallery, so I knew it resonated with at least one buyer, and was probably worth exploring.”

Renowned for his versatility, Hankins’ work spans vintage Americana and history-inspired artistry to his iconic bison pieces showcased at the Ritz-Carlton Bachelor Gulch. Hankins loves to dive into the history around the subjects he paints and was surprised that he couldn’t find any artwork with them as the subject.

“Other than some posters, the only real visuals are photographs and 8-millimeter film from the early 1940s, and there really isn’t one achieve, so I spent some time scouring the internet for different documentaries, stories and photographs. The paintings are a hybrid of old photos and local landscapes where they trained,” Hankins said.

Hankins visited Camp Hale and learned about the famous battles the 10th Mountain Division soldiers fought. There isn’t much at Camp Hale now, but during its height, there were 1,000 buildings that housed and supported the operations of 15,000 soldiers over three years.

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“The 10th Mountain Division was an extraordinary group of not only skiers, they also rock climbed and were well equipped for survival in any situation. They were instrumental in defeating the Germans in World War II. They scaled Riva Ridge, a 2,000-foot cliff at night and attacked the Germans from above, breaking the Nazi Gothic Line in the mountains that the Allies had not been able to get past,” Hankins said.

One of Hankins’ favorite pieces in the collection is called “Homage” which has a soldier standing on Notch Mountain overlooking Mount of the Holy Cross.

“It is a great conversation piece that you can derive a lot of different meaning and symbolism from,” Hankins said.

Hankins has enjoyed the process of learning more about this topic and paying tribute to the soldiers of the 10th and likes the fact that Vail has embraced this story so much.

“I love that Vail has taken it upon themselves to celebrate the legacy of the 10th. These soldiers symbolize the ultimate outdoor adventurer – disciplined, competent and ready for anything that comes their way,” Hankins said. “It is critical that we continue to celebrate their legacy because they are the reason for both our freedom and ability to ski and explore these incredible mountains in Colorado.”

The exhibit will be at Raitman Art Galleries in Vail Village until April 13.