Archives for Watercolor

Talent Times Three

Talent Times Three

January 1, 2021 | by

It’s always exciting when we feature artists and their art for the first time within the pages of Art of the West. That is just what we are doing on the following pages, as we share with you the words and works of three contemporary Western artists: David Frederick Riley, Gregory Strachov, and Jeremy Winborg. While their journeys and subjects differ, what they share is a love of creating art. Riley evolved from painting portraits to wildlife in muted tones. Strachov is fascinated by rocks, finding a beauty in them that most of us wouldn’t see. Winborg captures the strength
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Leaning Toward His Easel

Leaning Toward His Easel

September 1, 2020 | by

When viewers take note of the authenticity in Teal Blake’s body of Western artwork, they get a simple reminder that whatever painting he’s working on, it isn’t his first rodeo. In fact, before he got serious about art, Blake was on the college rodeo circuit and was so obsessed with it that he flunked his art classes. “At that point in your life nobody can tell you anything,” he says. “I wanted to be off chasing horses and be in the brush and live that wild life for a little while. I didn’t pay as much attention as I should
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The Studio of William Matthews

The Studio of William Matthews

July 2, 2020 | by

During the peak of the COVID-19 crisis in the spring, William Matthews was spending a lot of time in his studio, and he didn’t mind it a bit. His custom-built studio, which sits behind his home in Denver, Colorado, has always been his sanctuary. It’s his personal space, a place where he can be completely alone and paint in peace. Usually, however, Matthews has appointments to keep at his gallery and office in Denver’s RiNo Art District. That 12,000-foot space includes a woodshop, a frame shop, meeting areas, a public gallery, and his office space. He almost always has projects
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Chasing His Dream

Chasing His Dream

May 4, 2020 | by

Eleven years ago, when Tim Oliver walked into his house in Lubbock, Texas, his wife Missy took one look at him and asked, “What’s wrong?” “I don’t know,” he replied. The next day, when he received an email advertising a four-day classroom and plein air painting art workshop, he realized what it was that was bothering him. For 30 years he had put aside his desire to paint, but that email brought it back to the surface. “I had hit the 50-year mark, and I thought that all those things I said I’d do I better do,” he recalls. “I
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Hitting Their Stride

Hitting Their Stride

March 2, 2020 | by

Maybe it’s using complementary colors. Perhaps it’s painting in black and white or sepia tones. Maybe it’s diving deeply into one subject matter to capture it perfectly. Artists go through phases of work, improving their techniques and finding their places in the art world. Whether it’s at the beginning, middle, or later in their careers, something just ‘clicks’ when artists find the subject matter, medium, or technique that allows their creativity to shine. Meet three artists who are hitting their stride, and who are being featured in Art of the West for the first time. They are worthy of your
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The Power of the West

The Power of the West

March 2, 2020 | by

“I was born a storyteller.” So writes Mark Kohler in his book titled “Going West.” And he tells those stories brilliantly through his paintings of everything from working cowboys, bronc riders, and ropers to remudas, escaramuzas, and still lifes. “My art mirrors my life and experiences,” he writes. “We paint what we are.” Kohler loves what he paints and goes to great lengths to capture scenes—and people—that captivate and inspire him. He visits ranches in several states and takes a myriad of photographs of the people who work them and the animals that inhabit them. It took awhile for Kohler
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The Studio of Sonya Terpening

The Studio of Sonya Terpening

March 19, 2016 | by

For want of a door to close, Sonya Terpening’s studio was born. Really. How would you feel if you left work at night and your work stood outside your kitchen begging you to return, demanding your undivided attention? That is pretty much the experience Terpening had until a little more than a year ago when her work life changed for the better. Terpening is excited about her new studio, having recently taken over the master bedroom on the second floor in the Grapevine, Texas, home she has shared with her husband Mark for 28 years. In many respects, Terpening believes
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Relationships Are Key

Relationships Are Key

September 22, 2014 | by

After running a successful veterinary practice in Pennsylvania for 20 years, John Fawcett decided to cash it in and forge a new career as a fine artist. It was not a decision he made lightly, however. After all, his first love has always been animals (he bought his first horse at age 10), and leaving his practice behind hadn’t even been a consideration, until he and his wife Elizabeth happened on a Western art show in Arizona. John Fawcett Savvy Watercolor 23″ x 14″ “During gatherings and brandings, it is essential for cowboys to have a good horse that knows
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Addicted to Painting

Addicted to Painting

March 22, 2014 | by

Don Weller always intended to make horses his career—but he wasn’t planning on painting them. His goal, he says, was actually to be a rodeo cowboy. It was an obsession that started when Weller was 7 or 8 years old and reading cowboy stories by Will James. He says he whined enough that his mom bought him a horse of his own, which he started riding around his hometown of Pullman, Washington. Don Weller (Utah) A Culdesac of Conjecture Watercolor 18″ x 24″ “These guys are discussing where the cow might be. Nobody knows for sure, but the debate goes
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It’s Got to Come From the Soul

It’s Got to Come From the Soul

July 27, 2011 | by

It wasn’t a typical phone call for a guy who paints cowboy art. The caller was a representative for George Lucas-yes, that George Lucas, the producer of “Star Wars” fame—who was soliciting art samples for an upcoming book in which Lucas wanted his legendary characters depicted imaginatively in different genres. As Idaho artist Nelson Boren talked to the caller, he pondered the assignment with his usual wit. Nelson Boren (Idaho) Flowers Don’t Lie Watercolor 14″x14″ I’ve always loved the contrast between rough leather and soft flowers. Most cowboys I know are rough on the outside, but have soft hearts. Nelson
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