Archives for Portrait

Defying Definition

Defying Definition

November 19, 2016 | by

Tim Solliday’s paintings do not lend themselves to easy categorization. Clicking through the slides on his website once, twice, a couple dozen times, my eyes linger on the expressive faces, the light-drenched landscapes. Are these works realistic? Well, no, not exactly. No human eyes have ever been that wise or that kind. No natural light is quite so warm and inviting. I’m not looking at reality; I’m looking at something with more beauty and more potential for magic than mere prosaic reality. I find myself looking to literature instead, where there’s a term that feels close to apt: magical realism,
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A Long Time Coming

A Long Time Coming

September 19, 2016 | by

Mark Maggiori fell in love with the American West when he was a 15-year-old on vacation with his uncle and cousin. It was so different from his home in Paris, France, that he couldn’t help but be charmed by the wide-open spaces, the rugged terrain, and the hard-working cowboys. But when he returned to France, his attention quickly returned to his skateboard and his studies, and the romance of the West was forgotten. Almost 20 years later, Maggiori found himself at the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. By then, he had finished his formal art
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‘This is My Calling’

‘This is My Calling’

September 19, 2016 | by

Best known for his magnificent stone carvings, Oreland Joe also puts his artistic skills to good use in creating bronze sculptures, as well as paintings and jewelry. His creativity doesn’t end there, however. “I’ve ventured into filmmaking and am writing a book,” he says, adding that the process for both will take two to three years to complete. “The film is an historic documentary about a 4-year-old Ute boy who was stolen by the Cheyenne in 1849. He was called Yellow Nose and was adopted and raised by Spotted Wolf, head chief of the Northern Cheyenne. At age 12, there
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‘There Was Always a Plan’

‘There Was Always a Plan’

September 19, 2016 | by

Patient and painstakingly precise as he creates masterworks in oil, Canadian artist Bruce Lawes evokes an equally dedicated passion when it comes to shaping his own artistic destiny. His first painting sale at the age of 12 confirmed his innate artistic abilities, but the direction that talent would take was not clarified until six years later, when his father brought home a stunning coffee table book titled “The Art of Robert Bateman.” “I was absolutely mesmerized by his imagery,” Lawes says. “It brought my love for nature into focus and defined my goal to be able to paint like Bateman
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Putting Light Into the World

Putting Light Into the World

September 19, 2016 | by

“I try to be attentive, as I walk through life. It’s a spiritual thing for me, as well as an artistic thing. I see inspiration as God’s gift to humanity. You just have to be open to it and tap into it. Painting is my way of saying ‘Amen’ visually, of saying I’m in agreement with the beauty and mystery of this world.” Those “amens” have not gone unnoticed by art lovers, who eagerly collect the paintings Michelle Dunaway creates, paintings in which she skillfully shares her love of the world—its people and its land. In each, she finds stories
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I Just Have To Paint It

I Just Have To Paint It

September 19, 2016 | by

Jim Norton was, as he puts it, “scared to death.” He was pale and had a terrible headache, but he stood by his paintings, with a smile on his face, determined to suffer through what he anticipated was going to be a rather humiliating experience. The cause of Norton’s distress was his first showing with the prestigious Cowboy Artists of America (CAA). He was elected into membership in 1989, when he was just 34 years old, and was overwhelmed by the company he would be keeping—artists such as Howard Terpning, Robert Pummell, Roy Andersen, Jim Reynolds, and Ken Riley. Jim
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The Quiet Side of the West

The Quiet Side of the West

July 19, 2016 | by

When it comes to subject matter, Wyoming-based painter Ann Hanson’s inspiration lies just beyond her studio door, in and around her hometown of Shell. Named not for the mega oil company, but rather for huge deposits of prehistoric Ammonite fossils, the tiny rural community (population 84) traces its earliest heritage to the traditions of the Crow Indians and later to the pioneer ranching families that settled in the beautiful Big Horn Basin. Inspired by these cultural influences, Hanson creates highly detailed vignettes of daily life that go beyond mere imagery to capture the heart and soul of today’s West. By
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Following His Heart

Following His Heart

July 19, 2016 | by

For many people, “follow your heart” is a naively optimistic slogan on a motivational poster. For artist Mian Situ, it’s a proven life philosophy. “I have a daughter,” he says. “She’s in college, and she always talks with me about what she’s going to do. She’s in her junior year, and she still doesn’t know what she’s going to do. Every time she asks for my opinion, I tell her, ‘I can’t tell you what to do; you have to do what you like. Other people will tell you what has good earning potential, what will make you lots of
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Striking a Balance

Striking a Balance

May 19, 2016 | by

When Jeremy Lipking was 19 years old, he moved from his family’s home in Southern California to the Sierra Nevada mountain range. He had spent a year taking art classes at a community college but wasn’t fully committed to it. What he really wanted was to be outside—hiking in the mountains, rock climbing, and snowboarding on the California slopes. At some point during all of that outdoor activity, an idea occurred to Lipking: If he were to become a landscape artist, he could make a career out of being outside. Jeremy Lipking Ghost Herd Oil 24″x30″ This piece was inspired
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Magnificently Mesmerizing

Magnificently Mesmerizing

May 19, 2016 | by

Romel de la Torre won his first art award at the tender age of 10. Although his parents had supported his interest in art—encouraging him to draw and sketch the world around him—it wasn’t until he appeared on a local TV program to receive his award that they began to think, “Maybe he’s got a talent here.” He did indeed. Since then, de la Torre has earned many awards for his paintings, including the grand prize and artist of the year awards from the Oil Painters of America and, in 2008, a gold medal and the People’s Choice Award from
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