John and Terri Kelly Moyers need no introduction. But here’s one anyway. They’re a husband-wife duo with roots in New Mexico and Alberta, Canada, respectively. They’ve been painting since the 1970s, and by the looks of things, they have it pretty much figured out.
Other artists throw around adjectives like “award-winning,” but the Moyers family mantle would make Meryl Streep blush. Terri Kelly Moyers took home prizes from the Prix de West in 1996, 2011 and 2018. In 2012, she became one of the first women to win the Prix de West Museum Purchase Award. Those accolades should go nicely with the 25 or so her husband has from the Prix de West, Masters of the American West and awards from when he was a member of the Cowboy Artists of America. 
John Moyers, Blanket Patterns, acrylic, 13 x 10"
Five years ago, the longtime Santa Fe residents moved to Southern California, which will be the location of their next show at Maxwell Alexander Gallery in Los Angeles. The new show will have scenes influenced by Native Americans and New Mexico, and many will be drenched in fall colors.
Prior to the show, the couple was plein air painting in Hawaii. Unlike most people, the Moyers bring their day jobs to paradise when they go. “I don’t think they could turn it off,” Maxwell Alexander owner Beau Alexander says. For the Moyers, trips like these are to “exercise the muscles” and to come back to Western subject matter with renewed perspectives, they say.
“We have both always painted a variety of subject matter,” says Terri. “I’m just easily bored. I can’t just do one thing over and over. I have to move around.”
John Moyers, A Trail Less Traveled, oil, 36 x 36”
Alexander has an idea as to why they feel inclined to move around. “It’s interesting that John and Terri have spent so much time in New Mexico, and to separate themselves from it a little bit, I think it’s probably healthy,” he says.
While both artists are well-versed in Indigenous cultures and clothing, Alexander thinks their focus on technique and design is equally important. Both are students of art who are willing to take chances. Looking at John’s work through the years, you can see an obvious progression in style—“I think what defines a true artist is one that’s constantly evolving,” the gallery owner says.
Terri Kelly Moyers, Song and Prayer, oil, 24 x 24”"He continues: “What we’re able to do in our gallery is introduce their art to a new generation of people who have never purchased one of their paintings before.” For established collectors, there’s something too, he says. Maxwell Alexander Gallery is “converting people” to contemporary Western art and “redesigning what they think the West is” with forward-looking artists like the Moyers. —
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