Montana’s natural scenery and rich cultural history are huge influences for the Western Artist. Any visitor can quickly observe the close contact to the environment and the strong connection to community—creating a breeding ground for amazing artwork. The state’s many national parks—Glacier National Park, Yellowstone and the Rockies—are filled with an artist’s dream of abundant and diverse wildlife, picturesque landscapes and hypnotizing bodies of water. Many Native American tribes, the first Montanan inhabitants, still populate the state and further the magic the land carries.
Downtown Bozeman, Montana. Courtesy Visit Bozeman
There are many renowned art centers throughout the state of Montana that embody the spirit of the region they occupy. The Hockaday Museum of Art, in Kalispell, is dedicated to all things Glacier National Park, and will be celebrating their 6th annual exhibition and fundraiser A Timeless Legacy 2020: Women Artists of Glacier National Park. The all-female collection depicting phenomenal scenes of Glacier, will kick off August 8 with the sale and artist reception, and runs through October 31, 2020.
Glacier National Park. Courtesy Glacier Country Tourism
Heading to the state capital of Helena, one can find the Archie Bray Foundation for the Ceramic Arts founded in 1951, near the foothills of the Rocky Mountains. This famed ceramic center has seen the likes of well-known ceramicist’s Tre Arenz, Val Cushing and Wayne Higby, to name but a few. The mission of the center is to embrace all who are serious about furthering skills in ceramics.
Farmers Market in Billings, Montana. Courtesy Visit Billings.
While many events have been closed due to health restrictions, art galleries are open for many to enjoy. Montana Trails Gallery in Bozeman, is the largest gallery in the area for their Western, wildlife, sporting and contemporary artists. They have some stunning new works by artists such as Michael Blessing, John Demott, John Lewton and Greg Scheibel.
Other galleries include Visions West Contemporary gallery, a diverse contemporary collection of Western themes in Bozeman, along with Thomas Nygard Gallery with its 19th- and 20th-century Western American art, and in Billings, find some amazing, original art pieces at Terakedis Fine Art & Jewelry.
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Williams Studio, Inc.
(406) 539-4155, consbronze@gmail.com
www.conwilliams.com
Con Williams grew up on a ranch in south-central British Columbia, where he became a cowboy at a young age. He learned of his family’s heritage through stories told by his father. His great-great grandfather homesteaded in the Gallatin Valley, Montana, and even his name, which came from his great grandmother’s maiden name Conlin, is a reminder of his ancestry.
Con Williams, Whip N Spur, bronze, 18 x 20 x 10”
While attending Montana State University on a rodeo scholarship, Williams rode saddle-bronc horses, team roped, calf-roped and occasionally steer-wrestled. He graduated and worked at a bronze foundry and learned the bronze casting process, while rodeoing professionally. As he gained more knowledge, his desire to create his own bronzes surfaced.
Con Williams, Northern Solitude, bronze, 13 x 14 x 5½”
The urge to create is so strong in some artists that they sometimes risk everything to pursue their dreams. Williams suffered a severe accident in his effort to support his “feast or famine” artist lifestyle. In October 2000, while working on a construction job in Augusta, Montana, a 12-foot fall left him with a broken neck and four dislocated fingers. Despite such a tragedy, Williams made a full recovery and is now good as new.
Con Williams, Courtin’ With Poison, bronze, 23 x 19 x 10”
In the past 20 years, Williams has created 16 of the championship bronze trophies awarded at the Calgary Stampede. He’s also acquired collectors throughout the United States, Canada and Europe. Eventually, after his accident in 2000, Williams became the owner of the Mold Department at Art Castings of Montana (Belgrade). You can find his art in the Dyrk Godby Art Gallery in Sisters, Oregon, and Bozeman, Montana.
“A great artist sculpts with his heart and gives his artwork a voice,” Williams says. “A good sculpture should speak long after the artist is gone. When collecting art, you should buy art that touches your soul.”
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Bozeman Art Museum
2612 W. Main Street Ste B
Bozeman, MT 59718, (406) 551-2032
www.bozemanartmuseum.org
Eanger Irving Couse (1866-1936), Spirit of the Pool, oil on canvas, 24 x 29"
The Bozeman Art Museum’s mission is to inspire and foster creativity, along with the love of art through diverse and high-quality exhibits, programs, classes and lectures. The exhibit 19th and 20th Century Influential American Artists opens on July 15 and runs through mid-November.
Henry Farny (1847-1916), The Indian Chief, gouache on paper, 7¾ x 5¾"
Visitors will see work by Frederic Remington, Charles M. Russell, Eanger Irving Couse, Henry Farny, Winold Reiss, John Kensett, Thomas Anschutz, Sanford Robinson Gifford, Donald Teague, Emil Carlsen, E. Martin Hennings, Fremont Ellis, William Herbert “Buck” Dunton, Maynard Dixon, Raymond Jonson and many more.
Joseph Henry Sharp (1859-1953), The Old Arrow Tree, oil on canvas, 24 x 17"
Bozeman is creating an accredited museum where people of all ages can experience the transformational power of art. Join them in their vision. Check the website for hours of operation and additional information.
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Jake Gaedtke
jakegaedtke@gmail.com
www.landscape-art.com
Artist Jake Gaedtke has an unbridled passion for expressing himself in the form of painting. Not only do varied landscapes attract him the most but anything is subject to be captured on canvas.
Jake Gaedtke, An Evenings Walk, oil, 22 x30"
Water however, in all its forms, seems to be his favorite attraction. “Water contains so many qualities that it would take more than a lifetime to capture its beauty, moods and mysteries,” Gaedtke says. “Like many other landscape painters, I have a love for nature and the outdoors.” Expressing the many facets of nature, from the reality to the abstract, continues to inspire his work.
Jake Gaedtke, Basement of Time, oil, 24 x 32"
Gaedtke believes that it’s hard to pass up on work that truly inspires the soul. “If a collector finds a painting that speaks to them and continues to remind them of an experience while visiting a place, the painting reflects long after,” he explains. “It’s the reason we paint. “Collecting paintings from an artist that consistently speak to them, creates a relationship that goes beyond surface level.”
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Corvidae Drawings & Designs
Kalispell, MT, (406) 370-6728
corvidaedd@gmail.com
www.corvidaedrawingsdesigns.com
Corvidae Drawings & Designs is a home goods and gift brand based in Western Montana, and founded in 2016. It all started with a love of gifting and a passion for creating by owner and artist, Kim Shirley.
Kim Shirley, crows and flowers tea towel, enamel mug, and Glacier Park tiny notes
Corvidae has grown from a few designs and one product, to many over the past few years. Shirley produces hand-crafted and hand-printed home goods, as well as gifts and paper products with designs for every day, or remembrance of the fun places visited.
Shirley lives close to Glacier National Park and many of her images are inspired by the wild places that surround her, as well as her love of adventure. All of the screen-printed products are hand printed and crafted by Shirley in her Kalispell, Montana, studio. All the products produced feature original art.
You can find Corvidae products in stores across the nation and a few national parks, such as Glacier, Yellowstone and Denali.
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Thomas G. Lewis
546 Grand Drive, Bigfork, MT 59911
(406) 837-6775, Tom@thomasglewis.com
www.thomasglewis.com
An avid lover of the beauty inherent in the natural world, Thomas G. Lewis is convinced that heaven abounds with trout streams cascading from rugged snow-capped mountain peaks. Having resided in the Southwest for six decades, Lewis now calls Montana home. He has become intimately acquainted with the American West’s picturesque landscape and heritage.
Thomas G. Lewis, Aspen Palette, oil on canvas, 10 x 20”
While the primary focus for Lewis is impressionist paintings of the American Western landscape and wildlife, particularly Montana and Arizona, he is currently pursing impressions of Western ranch life—working men and women carving out lives on the west’s enduring ranches.
Thomas G. Lewis, Colorfall, oil on panel, 10 x 20”
“Cowboys twirling their lariats and herding cattle, a housewife gathering laundry in the face of a storm—these show Montana as not just a land of spectacular lakes and mountains, but a land that epitomized the working west,” says author David Vale of Lewis’s work. “You don’t get tangled in the detail of an impressionist painting; you get the idea, the feel, and then let your mind and imagination take over.”
The collector is presented with scenes painted in lavish, rich color and loose brushwork. “My experiences are communicated through sure, confident brushstrokes; sometimes sparing, other times rich glazes and overlays of color upon color,” Lewis says. His work can be fearlessly dark or bright and luminous, yet always resulting in works of unparalleled charm and delight.
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