WAOW Artistry of the West

The WAOW Artistry is slowly being built to provide a page on our site to promote each artist. This project began late summer 2024. We have over 300 members to load here on their pages. You can search by name, location or by subject matter to find an artist.

Sue Granskie. New Jersey . waow

I was born and raised in New Jersey. Even though I was brought up in a small New Jersey town, I have always been a lover of all art forms of the west. As a child, and the daughter of an artist, I could always be found creating art throughout my childhood. I felt destined to become an artist, and it has been my privilege to work in the arts during my lifetime.

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Horses, Cowboys WAOW . Horses, Cowboys WAOW .

Rhonda Morfin. Nevada . waow

Rhonda is a charcoal artist whose wild heart is rooted in the sweeping solitude of Nevada’s Great Basin. Born and raised in Elko, she’s shaped by rugged terrain, long drives, and the fierce independence of desert life. Her art draws deeply from the region’s raw beauty and the visceral grace of horses, a connection sparked in childhood when pencils first met hoofbeats.

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Carla Stroh . Wyoming . waow

She's the Annie Oakley to his Buffalo Bill!
Carla and her husband live totally off the grid on their cattle ranch in Wyoming. A seasoned cowgirl, Carla transitions easily from horse trainer to renowned western artist. There is music in her soul, family in her heart and her next big adventure on her mind. She prefers to see the world from the back of her treasured Arabian, Spook. 

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Sherrie Nielsen . California . waow

    Sherrie Nielsen is a figurative artist creating oil paintings and drawings of fauna, flora, cosmos and humanity, working in California.  Her favorite mediums are oil, charcoal and colored pencil.  Her art works have been juried into international and regional shows, received recognition and awards; and have been published as illustration in a major university academic journal and book cover design.

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Leah Wiedemer . Florida . waow

Every artist will tell you that they have loved to draw from the time they could hold a crayon. I’m no different. Every artist will tell you that they have loved to draw from the time they could hold a crayon. I’m no different. 

I remember when my cousin, a couple of years my junior, won an art award in his elementary school. It was then that I decided a real artist was some sort of phenom. Not something I was born to. It didn’t stop me from drawing, but it did make me think a career in art was not something in my future. …

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Debbie Pounders . Florida . waow

Debbie Pounders, a self taught artist from Tennessee, transforms her visions into immersive works of art that captivate viewers and collectors with their realism and innovation. Each piece begins with her unique process of mentally capturing the subject through her photography and painting in her mind before she even approaches the canvas.

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Tara Kemp . Oregon . waow

“I strive to preserve the beauty in nature through my work. It is something of an act of preservation and in a way an act of rebellion to bring to the viewers attention the beauty of our endangered natural world.”

A “values” painter, Tara loves attuning to shadow and highlight, noticing the way a color changes as it moves into shadow or light, and reflects colors from it’s surroundings. 

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Canine, Dogs, Horses, Landscape WAOW . Canine, Dogs, Horses, Landscape WAOW .

Nancy Smyth . Florida . waow

My art journey began as a child and has been a constant throughout my life. Although I received my BFA in College, I did not start my full-time career as an artist until later in life as my earlier career was in the corporate world. I am now focusing on my new path as a portrait artist that specializes in equine and canine art.

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Teresa Lynn Johnson. New Mexico. waow

Teresa Lynn Johnson, an artist based in New Mexico, has been refining her oil painting expertise for many years, with a focus on western landscapes and both wild and domestic animals. Teresa was born in Coleman, Texas, and spent her formative years living on a secluded four-hundred-acre farm, where she engaged with animals and explored nature daily. This environment fostered her love for wildlife and natural settings.

 

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Wildlife, Birds, Nature, Still Life WAOW . Wildlife, Birds, Nature, Still Life WAOW .

Linda Becker . California . waow

Linda Becker has always had a passion for life, people, children and animals. She was shy in school but when it came to her art classes, she felt right at home and knew her calling. She devoted her life to her children, who always came first, but once grown, she finally found time for herself. With her passion for art rekindled, she decided to attend college taking computer and several art classes consisting of drawing and painting, learning perspective, composition and the balance of color. She also received instruction from local established artists for many years.

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Lynn Shield . Montana . waow

Lynn is a contemporary Western artist known for her vibrant and colorful paintings that capture the beauty of wildlife, horses, cowgirls and cowboys, and the western lifestyle. Her passion for art started at a young age, and throughout her career, she used her creative energy as a marketing professional in the aerospace industry and later in her own small marketing and web design firm.

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Wildlife, Birds, Nature WAOW . Wildlife, Birds, Nature WAOW .

Debra Trent . Maryland . waow

 A story teller has the power to captivate, evoke deep emotions, impress and inspire. An artist gets to do that visually. There is something thrilling about a blank canvas. It invites and intimidates at the same time. Debra Trent’s story as an artist begins and ends in nature. Raw, trancendent, solitary. The animals captivate her, and the wilderness provides infinite inspiration.

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Western, Wildlife, Landscape, Dogs, Birds WAOW . Western, Wildlife, Landscape, Dogs, Birds WAOW .

Casey Cheuvront . Scottsdale AZ . waow

My favorite shoes are hiking boots.

For years I've explored the wildernesses of the Southwest, hiking, backpacking, hang gliding and mountain biking - interacting with our wild places up close and in person. This has profoundly influenced my work.  I believe we are incomplete without a connection to, and appreciation of, the natural world, and that we should cherish and protect it. 

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Western, Realism, Wildlife, Landscape WAOW . Western, Realism, Wildlife, Landscape WAOW .

Leah Lucas . Canada . waow

Leah Lucas was raised in southern Alberta, Canada.  From early childhood she reveled in the freedom to explore her world on horseback. She would forever be informed by miles of flat unending 360-degree views, covered with expansive blue skies, butted against the imposing Rockies in the distance. Developing a deep connection with the natural world, fostered by a profound love and understanding of horses, led to her life’s passion. Leah has spent her life raising, training, and showing these magnificent beasts; developing a thriving practice devoted to healing horses with physical and/or behavioral imbalances.

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Western, Realism, Wildlife, Pets, Dogs, Cats WAOW . Western, Realism, Wildlife, Pets, Dogs, Cats WAOW .

Julie Frothingham . Kansas . waow

It was on the prairies of Minnesota that I learned to observe and listen. The song “Country Sunshine” says it nicely. I am forever a child of God; a student of life.

I believe everyone is an artist.  Art is life. We can't help but share life all around us daily. We each have a gift and a personal choice as to how we express it, feel it, use it, and thus, live it. 

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