Chris Navarro is an award-winning artist who thinks outside the box. Best known for his bronze sculptures that feature everything from cowboys to T-Rex. His latest project is a wind fence constructed from vintage wind turbine blades at the entrance to the 355-acre Wyoming Rescue Missions Recovery Ranch in Esterbrook, Wyoming. Navarro calls the sculpture “Wall of Renewal”, an appropriate title because it will keep a wind turbine out of a landfill by giving it a new purpose, which mirrors the stories of many people who come through the mission’s doors as they struggle with homelessness, joblessness, and drug addiction. The wind
Read More

  “What began as a simple email turned into a journey of creativity, courage, and connection,” says Wisconsin watercolorist Caitlin Leline Hatch. It certainly did—but she almost missed it. Hatch says she considered deleting the email she found in her inbox five months ago, but when she saw that it was from someone connected with Coors Banquet and Wrangler, she opened it. The senders said they were looking for an artist to create a series of original, Western-inspired prints and that they immediately thought of her, mentioning that the tone, texture, and spirit of her paintings reflect the storytelling and sense of American
Read More

  The folks at the Museum of Western Art in Kerrville, Texas, have much to celebrate. In September, True West Magazine ranked it the number one Western art museum in the United States. The magazine evaluates museums based on their exhibits, facilities, multimedia and online accessibility, events, and promotion of historic and cultural resources. “Last year, we were ranked number two, after the Eiteljorg [Museum of American Indians and West Art],” says Darrell Beauchamp, executive director of the Museum of Western Art. “We’re not the ‘big guys,’ and we don’t try to be. We’re a little museum doing a great job.”   Museum of Western Art
Read More

  Lisa Sorrell is a master boot maker with clients throughout the world seeking out her customized cowboy boots. They are drawn to her exquisite, intricate designs and to the quality of her work—and they are willing to ante up a starting price of $10,000 to own a pair of her magnificent boots.     Sorrell’s clients are also willing to fly to her shop in downtown Guthrie, Oklahoma, or to fly her to their locations to have their feet measured and to select a design for the customized footwear she creates. Other shoe makers also turn to her for guidance;
Read More

  Every evening, when 8 p.m. rolls around, Tobias Sauer puts his eldest boy—Cash, who is 6—to bed and follows a routine as he does so. He lies down with him, makes shadow puppets for him, and reads him a book. That routine is followed by another one that Sauer put into practice a few years ago—spending two to three hours each night making accoutrements for Western models to wear during artist photo shoots.     Sauer, who lives in Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, with his wife Andrea Hunter and his children, has been painting full-time for about seven years now.
Read More