KEN W. HALL

1944-2020

His Soul Lives In Montana

by Penny Hall 

My beloved husband and artist, Kenneth W. Hall, left his physical body April 23, 2020 shortly after walking into the Madison Valley Hospital ER accompanied by our dear friend, Wade Miller. 

Ken always did everything his unique way, so it is no surprise he chose to depart this world so quickly after enjoying a powerful evening of heart felt sharing and celebration with his spiritual family.

The healing partnership I shared with Ken began when we met in April, 26 years ago in Texas, the state where he was born.  

Our angels must have enjoyed the intricate mystical twists and turns in our individual lives to arrange our meeting in the hospital in Fort Worth that day where we assisted in the healing and transition of my ex-fiancé and the family members he left behind.

Just ten days later, Ken asked me to go with him to Santa Fe; we left the next day.  It took Ken three days to get the courage to show me a handful of his photographs.  

That night I told God they were too good to be hidden in a closet and that there had to be a way to share them with the world.  

The next morning Ken proposed to me. Immediately thereafter, the phone rang. It was an offer to submit his images - that day - to be juried into the Arts League and Arts Society in Santa Fe, New Mexico.  Ken’s art was unanimously accepted. After that first, sudden and unexpected success, together we produced black and white images in the dark room and sold them on the Plaza each weekend. 

Ken was a genius in the dark room, creating his unique form of magic. He would visualize an image as black and white in his mind even before capturing it with his camera.  Every day visitors to our booth compared Ken’s work to that of Ansel Adams.  

I had the honor to witness Ken create his largest body of work that transitioned from dark room and film to digital, eventually expanding to include his flute music, performing, writing, and video productions.

Ken and I arrived in the Madison Valley in the fall of 2000 and never left.  Many times Ken said that Ennis was the only place in his life where he ever felt at home. He refused to leave his beloved Madison Valley for any reason. 

Now his spirit is free from his body and is forever one with the natural landscape he so beautifully captured during his 35-years as an artist. I will preserve Ken’s artistic and spiritual legacy to live on forever.

The family Ken leaves behind includes his wife, Penny Hall, his sister Roylene Berry, nephews Steve Berry, Randy Berry, Carl Berry, David Hall, nieces Brenda Hejnal, Leah Johnson, Vivian Haile, Mary Lou Skelton and 7 grand nieces, 11 grand nephews, 4 great grand nieces and 3 great grand nephews. 

We are all shocked by the suddenness of Ken’s passing.  We will forever see his smiling face, camera in hand, capturing in a way only he could what I call “a blink of God’s eye”.

I pray you take comfort in knowing Ken is not gone. His spirit is everywhere you look. He is in the dirt, the rocks, the water, the wind, the clouds, the trees, the leaves, and the sounds of nature.  You can still feel his generous, healing spirit in the photographs, videos, writings and flute music he created and gifted to us all.

A friend shared with me a video Ken gave her the day before he died.  It includes his magical images of Quake Lake and his personal flute music.  

It is an appropriate goodbye to us all from Ken, especially during this current time of global change that gives birth to gifts and miracles beyond anything we can ever imagine.  

Here is Ken’s parting message to all of us:

“My soul lives in Montana”

Visions are the birthing nest of miracles. 

Miracles are our direct connection with change. 

Change is God’s personal answer to our prayers. 

God’s universe is vast and unending.

Into our universe we must pray…

Pray greater than what we feel we are worthy. 

Give thanks for the gift and share it with humility 

For this is what we are worthy by Grace.

Amen, and so it is by Grace.

Thank you for loving, supporting and encouraging Ken as he created his amazing legacy of healing art.  

We love you all deeply.

Penny and Ken