Monte Moore describes his art career as a large tree. After so many years as an illustrator—and so much more—he says, “I started growing another branch.” That new branch is his career as a fine artist who captures the people and wildlife of the West in a myriad of mediums, including acrylics, pencils, oils, bronze, and mixed media.

The Colorado artist, who was born in Phoenix, Arizona, in 1971, considers himself blessed to have had parents who encouraged him and instilled in him a love of art, particularly Western art. A year after Moore was born, his father bought a 30,000-acre cattle ranch in Idaho and, for the following 10 years, the family split their time between the two states.

Moore’s mother created fine art and jewelry that was carried in galleries and gifted her young son a signed copy of “The Pencil,” a book by award-winning artist Paul Calle. His parents decorated the family’s ranch house with prints of works by Frederic Remington, Charles M. Russell, Frank McCarthy, and other famous Western artists. Seven years later, they built a 10,000-square foot hunting and fishing lodge on the ranch and decorated the walls inside with Western and mountain man art.

Read the full article in the March/April 2023 issue.

Sacred

Watercolor and acrylic
15″ by 20″

“Featuring the return of the ‘white buffalo,’ which is a symbol to the Lakota people of returning prosperity to The People when the white buffalo returns. In the background, the viewer can see the spirits of the Lakota chiefs guiding the mythical beast back to their hunting grounds.”