Archives for Wildlife

Wildlife Wonders

Wildlife Wonders

June 15, 2019 | by

For years, wildlife artist William Alther had painted in his spare time, taking brush to canvas on a limited basis. Finally, in 2004, confident that he had refined his skills to a satisfactory level, he decided the time had come to make the transition from his day job with the zoology department of the Denver Museum of Nature and Science and begin earning his living as a professional artist. It was a good decision. Within 15 years, galleries in Colorado, Texas, and Wyoming were carrying Alther’s evocative wildlife imagery, and his work was regularly juried into prestigious national exhibitions, including
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The Hemingway Version

The Hemingway Version

June 15, 2019 | by

Today, the name Sandy Scott is synonymous with sculpture. But there is much more to this versatile artist than meets the eye. Her experience and expertise spans decades—and abilities. No matter what Scott does, she charges full bore into it and excels at it, leading the kind of life many of us can only dream of. Born in rural Oklahoma, near Tulsa, Scott knew early on that art was her destiny. The path she took, however, didn’t follow a particularly natural progression. She’s the first to tell you that her journey has been propelled by good fortune, but it’s clear
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Hooked on the Feeling

Hooked on the Feeling

February 15, 2019 | by

If she hadn’t been diagnosed with Type I diabetes during her first year of college, Carol Strock Wasson today would be a chemical engineer rather than an artist, who is thrilling collectors with her beautifully rendered landscape paintings. In order to deal with that diagnosis and the required twice daily insulin injections, she returned home to Union City, Indiana, where she currently resides, and began to paint. “It’s the reason I’m an artist today,” Strock Wasson says. “I had painted in high school, and my mother was an artist, so I turned to art. Carol Strock Wasson (Indiana) Yellow Bucket
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Creative Adventure

Creative Adventure

February 15, 2019 | by

Although Jill Soukup was born in Buffalo, New York, she could lay claim to the status of Colorado native. Her upbringing, education, and the inspiration for her current paintings have all been influenced by the fact that she has resided in the Centennial State since she was six months old. Soukup (pronounced Soakup) is a Czechoslovakian surname, the equivalent of the name Smith in the United States, but the talented artist and her paintings are by no means common. Her father was a veterinarian, and her mother was dedicated to saving abandoned pets, so there is little wonder that Soukup
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The Studio of Don Weller

The Studio of Don Weller

November 15, 2018 | by

Little did Utah-based watercolorist Don Weller realize that, when he and his wife chose to relocate from Southern California to northern Utah in the early 1980s, that decision would become the impetus for him to begin a career as a fine artist. It was a move that would set the stage for the rest of his life—and his career. In 1960, after earning a Bachelor of Arts Degree in fine art from the University of Washington in his hometown of Pullman, Weller headed to Los Angeles, California to pursue a career in commercial art Don Weller (Utah) Don Weller Painting
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Personality and Panache

Personality and Panache

November 15, 2018 | by

Hours spent observing wildlife in its natural habitat during his youth in Wyoming instilled in Dan Ostermiller an affinity for animals. Working alongside his well-know taxidermist father, Roy, from early in his childhood gave Ostermiller technical skills that set him apart as a sculptor later in life. But, taxidermy was not something he cared for. “I grew up in that business, but never liked it,” he says. “However, it did give me a lot of tools I needed to become an artist.” Ostermiller never received any formal training, but he knew art was his future, and painting was his initial
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‘I’m Living the Life I Paint’

‘I’m Living the Life I Paint’

November 15, 2018 | by

Tim Cox has gone fishing twice already this year. That might not seem like much to most avid fishermen, but Cox isn’t complaining. It’s more fishing that he’s done for the better part of a decade. In 2010, Cox became the vice president of the Cowboy Artists of America (CAA). The next year, when he was president, the organization officially moved from its long-time headquarters in Phoenix, Arizona, to Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. That transition consumed most of Cox’s time for much of his two-year term as president. “I think I averaged about four hours of sleep a day for those
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Heading in the Right Direction

Heading in the Right Direction

September 15, 2018 | by

On a recent trip to Glacier National Park, Dustin Van Wechel came upon a rugged old tree that stopped him in his tracks. Something about its trunk, which had folded over itself and the mist hanging in its branches, reminded him of a scene from a horror movie—which gave him an idea for a painting. “I looked at it and I thought that it would make a great setting for a group of ravens feeding on an animal carcass,” Van Wechel says. “But I wasn’t interested in actually painting the carcass, I just wanted to paint it so that anyone
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Poetic Landscapes

Poetic Landscapes

September 15, 2018 | by

For Colorado artist David Grossmann, painting is a heartfelt means of communication. It’s his way of incorporating beauty, creation, imagination, and memory into his art. At first glance, his muted landscapes seem simple, soft. Look closer, and you see they are teeming with texture, nuance, and subtle commentary. Grossmann hopes his quiet, evocative paintings inspire viewers to linger and reflect on nature, to observe the beauty around them. “There is so much clamor for attention [in the world] that it’s easy to miss the quiet,” he explains. “I’d like people to pause and observe, look at the textures. I paint
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Reaching New Heights

Reaching New Heights

September 15, 2018 | by

Martin Grelle was a very nervous young man when, in 1974, just a year after he graduated from high school, he had his first art show at a gallery and frame shop in Clifton, Texas. “I had no idea what to expect,” he says. “It’s hard to remember, but I probably had, at most, eight or 10 pieces for the show, and we sold almost all of them the first evening. I had a combination of oils, charcoals, and pastels in the show, and the largest piece was probably an oil painting about 24” by 36”. It probably sold for
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