Some nights, Mary Ross Buchholz dreams that she is making art. “Sometimes I wake up and—oh, mercy—I didn’t finish that after all; it was just a dream,” she says in her melodic west Texas drawl. “I eat, sleep, and breathe art.”

It’s an apt commentary on Buchholz’s life, a busy but joyous synthesis of ranching, family life, and, of course, art. She and her husband Bob run a good-sized ranch near Eldorado, Texas—population 1,961—and for many years she has balanced her creative endeavors
seamlessly with the family business.

“Maybe a little bit of our daily ranch life shines through in my art,” she says thoughtfully, reminiscing about days spent sometimes in the studio, sometimes on the range, sometimes hauling her three boys to 4H events.

Mary Buchholz

Bittin’ Up
Charcoal & Graphite
18.5″ x 10″

“Bob’s hands are shown fitting the bit for this young horse, which has a big, kind eye. My husband’s hands could tell a story all by themselves, and that’s why I have chosen to do a series of drawings that include his calloused and expressive hands.”

Mary Buchholz

Gentlin’ Touch
Charcoal & Graphite
27.5″ x 21.5″

“New Mexico cowboy Skeeter Crawford snubs and eases up next to this young horse in the round pen. The light shining through the round pen casts interesting shadows across the rump of the young horse, which has finally accepted the cowboy’s ‘Gentlin’ Touch.’ The skill of the cowboy and calm demeanor of the snubbing horse helps with the process.”