In describing one’s end, its important where things began. For me that beginning place was where many consider “Where the West Begins”, Ft.Worth, Texas, aka “Cowtown”. Where there are cattle, there are cowboys. You’ll see longhorns being driven down the brick streets of the “Stockyards” to this very day. When one considers what the label of “western contemporary art”, by definition it is this marriage of the urban and rural West. My work is a synthesis of a life spent in the West. When my family relocated to Tucson, Arizona, in 1977, my desert apprenticeship began. There was no better art class than the rock and cactus studded hills on the edge of Tucson! Renowned western art pioneer, Maynard Dixon thought so as well. I esteemed it no less than he did, as it became the beginning of my western aesthetic citizenship. During my collegiate years at TCU and CU Boulder, my thesis work focused on these western vistas. While pursuing my MFA in Colorado, I spent almost as much time traveling to the back country canyons of remote southeastern Utah, as I did in the studio. Once again, the experiential and seductive tactile qualities of the high desert took the lead in shaping my identity. The move westward continued when I found myself working as a guide for a mountain bike touring company based in Las Vegas. I was living the dream, leading week long self supported tours into Northern Arizona, Utah and New Mexico. On a trip to the North Rim of the Grand Canyon, I fell off a 35 foot cliff. My adventure days were over, and the real education began. A new chapter began, as another closed. My 20 year career as an college instructor and exhibiting artist began on that fateful day. God was merciful in sparing my life that day, as well as providing a means to make art as a career. Nearly 25 years after that fall, I’ve returned to the heart of  Texas to make art and raise a family. Not far from where the story of Texas began, my “Western” rides on.

I would LOVE a commission of my horse, Chief, by him .