For Tom Browning, there was never a doubt that he would be an artist. And, oh, what an artist he has become! The many awards he has won and the respect he has earned from peers and collectors give testimony to his talent

Browning’s depictions of the West—its people, wildlife, horses, cowboys, and Indians—come from the heart, from a deep love and respect for his subjects. His love of art goes back to his childhood. Born in Ontario, Oregon, in 1949, he was fascinated by the artwork he saw in magazines. By the time he was 9, he was drawing horses, wildlife, and Indians.

“Every week I’d watch a TV program with John Nagy, where he’d teach me to draw with some understanding of the basics, like perspective and form,” Browning says. “Thanks to my Mom and teachers, especially my fourth grade teacher, I was encouraged to continue. The creative gene in me seemed to flourish and kept on going. As a kid, I never had any doubt that I would grow up to be an artist.”

Tom Browning (Oregon)

Break in the Action
Oil
20″x18″
“This is very typical of what I love to paint: muted and greyed colors, with a strong sense of light coming from behind. The light hitting the dust, the horse’s white rump, and the rider’s shirt create a strong image with lots of contrast.”

Tom Browning (Oregon)

Cowboyin’
Oil
30″x30″
“Although I normally prefer an elongated format, I wanted to find a different way to concentrate on the cowboy in this piece. By putting him in a more confined space in the composition and letting the horses run off the borders, I think we accomplished this. The simple title came to me right before finishing the painting.”