Posts by Vicki Stavig

Electric Americana

Electric Americana

April 7, 2025 | by

Colt Idol is hard at work in the studio at his home in Whitefish, Montana. That’s not surprising, but what is surprising is that he’s surrounded by 21 paintings on the floor and hanging on the walls in a U-shape around him. “Right now, I have 21 pieces in the works,” he says. “Some artists work in a more linear fashion, but I like to spend about three hours on a piece and then go on to another. I work on four or five pieces each day; it helps me get a stronger end piece by spending time with it.
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Quiet, Peaceful, and Contemplative

Quiet, Peaceful, and Contemplative

April 7, 2025 | by

Carmen Drake laughs easily, speaks enthusiastically, and paints beautifully. Her goal is to bring beauty and peace through her art into the lives of others. Her own life hasn’t always been one of peace and joy, however. She has dealt with heartbreak and loss, but she doesn’t dwell on the past—except, of course, when she’s painting an old pair of shoes or umbrella. Drake is curious about the past lives of things, which might sound a little odd since we normally don’t think of things as having lives. Not so with Drake. “I think about the people who might have
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Watercolor Illusionist

Watercolor Illusionist

February 7, 2025 | by

Richie Vios grew up in a house in Cebu City in the Philippines that was filled with the smell of oil paints, thanks to his father and siblings, who were all painters. “The smell of oil paint was always present in my home,” he says. “That was my childhood smell.” With all that oil painting going on, it’s a little surprising that Vios’ medium today is watercolor. Yes, he says, he did paint with oils with his father when he was in high school, but didn’t plan to become an artist. Instead, he earned a degree in architecture in the
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The Studio of Donna Howell-Sickles

The Studio of Donna Howell-Sickles

February 7, 2025 | by

Working in a studio that overlooks the historic square in Saint Jo, Texas, Donna Howell-Sickles is surrounded by the tools and atmosphere she needs to create her award-winning paintings and drawings of women who inspire her: cowgirls. She previously worked in a studio—a former church—in the city, but left that behind in 2013, after she and her husband John opened a gallery downtown and renovated that building to include a studio on the second floor. “It turned out to be a fabulous thing,” Howell-Sickles says. “It’s a beautiful space that is much more public than the sanctuary-like space of the
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A Grand Affair

A Grand Affair

December 13, 2024 | by

Twenty-two years ago, while driving from a workshop in Wyoming to her home in California, Amery Bohling took a detour and stopped at the Grand Canyon. She had visited the natural wonder when she was 12, and wanted to revisit it as an adult. That spur-of-the-moment decision was to have a major impact on Bohling and her art. It was October, a busy time at the canyon, but she was able to get a room at the lodge on the North Rim for one night—the last night of the season. She spent the day, taking photos and sitting on the
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All is Well in Paradise

All is Well in Paradise

December 13, 2024 | by

Scott Rogers has heard “the voice” speak to him twice. Both times it changed his life. The first time came about after he had purchased a sculpture created by his uncle, Grant Speed. He had seen the sculpture, entitled Rough String, in 1982 and knew he had to have it but, being a college student, he couldn’t afford it. “In 1990, when I had a little money, I called uncle Grant and said I wanted to buy it,” Rogers says. It had sold out, but Speed, through an art gallery, was able to locate one that would soon become available
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Portraits of the West

Portraits of the West

October 9, 2024 | by

The three best gifts you could give to Cindy Long are a pencil, paper, and a man with a weathered old face. Then give her a few weeks to work her magic. The result will be a detailed, black-and-white portrait that will have you studying each line, each shadow, the eyes, the face. It will also have you wondering who he is, what he’s thinking, and what he’s experienced. And that’s exactly what Long wants. “I want to convey the depth and personalities of my people—an emotion, a mood, the story behind the eyes,” she says, adding that the same
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The Romance of the West

The Romance of the West

October 9, 2024 | by

Dakota Pitts is on a self-guided journey that began 11 years ago, when he was 23 and took a life drawing class at City College in Long Beach, California. That journey has taken him around the world and has landed his paintings in some impressive art shows and galleries. Pitts’ love of the outdoors traces back to his childhood. Growing up in Long Beach, he spent most of his time drawing, surfing, and skateboarding. “I just wanted to be outside,” he says, adding that he still does. Following his high school graduation, Pitts moved up the coast to Santa Barbara,
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Following Her Heart

Following Her Heart

August 8, 2024 | by

Don’t try to pidgeon-hole Jennifer Johnson—or her art. Her subjects are varied, but her goal with each is the same: to celebrate the past. She captures nature’s vibrancy with bright, bold colors, pays tribute to the charm of the 1930s and 1940s, and shares her love of wildlife. “All of my paintings have a story from my own experiences, stories told to me by my parents and grandparents and even people I meet at art events who share their adventures,” Johnson says. “When it feels right in a piece, I love to include a touch of whimsy and humor because
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The Studio

The Studio

August 8, 2024 | by

Kyle Polzin’s studio at his home in Austin, Texas, isn’t a grand, architectural space but it suits him just fine. A former study, the room is just off the entryway to the home he shares with his wife Leigh and their two teenage daughters. Surrounded by oak trees, his house sits on one-and-a-half acres of property in a quaint neighborhood that overlooks Austin and the surrounding hill country. Earlier this summer, Polzin was hard at work in his studio, preparing paintings for a show he’ll have in September at Legacy Gallery in Santa Fe, New Mexico. The painting resting on
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