Marla Smith is a contemporary oil painter known for creating artworks that reflect the landscapes and spirit of the American Southwest.  Her paintings capture Southwest scenery and ranch life, drawing on the natural beauty and wide–open spaces of the region, especially near Prescott, her home.

 June Dudley’s paintings celebrate heritage, family, and the American West, rendered with personal warmth and vibrant color.  Working in acrylics, Dudley describes her work as “impressionistic realism,” in which she combines expressive color with detailed, realistic scenes.  She has deep, emotional connection to her subjects as many of them are based on family members or close friends, or her own animals.  Thus, her work has an immediate intimate feeling.  You are welcomed into her world, rural life in Texas, as an observant friend.  

Laara Cassells is a contemporary Canadian artist noted for her paintings of figurative and pet portraits, wildlife, western themes, and equine subjects executed primarily in acrylic. Her style is grounded in realism blended with storytelling, often highlighting the emotional and individual character in both people and animals.   She lives and works on a ranch in central Alberta.  This rustic setting especially inspires her paintings of wildlife and western scenes.   

Lana Dunlap is a self-taught fine artist known for creating artworks inspired by the working West — including portraits and images of ranch life, livestock, and western themes. Her pieces often capture both the quiet strength and raw emotion in her subjects.  She works in gouache, colored pencils, and charcoal on various substrates.

Kadra Nevitt is a Kansas-based artist known for her evocative works centered on Western themes, outdoor life, natural landscapes and animals —most notably horses.  She blends heartfelt subject matter with technically strong pastel and watercolor work to evoke the beauty and spirit of the American West.  She is self-taught and has developed a reputation for life–like portrayals that lean toward soft realism with expressive technique. 

LJ McLoughlin is an artist and a working cowgirl.  She creates oil and acrylic paintings.  Her inspiration comes from the gritty scenery and western lifestyle she is surrounded by — historical ranches, working ranches, and the Native American land where the Apache and Navajos once lived, along with the special ambient light of Arizona, the color of the rocks, dirt, sky and the mountains.  McLoughlin’s work reflects her authentic experience with ranch life—she grew up raising and training horses and continues to live and work on a ranch in southeastern Arizona with her husband.

Whether it is the poetry of a mustang in gallop or the sublime beauty of the southwestern landscape, Cheryl Koen’s paintings reflect the spirit of the west and its inhabitants. The wide–open spaces conveyed in her work are meant to invoke a feeling of nostalgic connection with the wild west and dreams of times past and present.

Lauri Ketchum's agricultural roots and life-long love affair with the American cowboy have fueled her concentration in Western Art.  Ketchum loves capturing the essence of hard–working ranchers and sharing the ranching lifestyle through her art.  She began her art career working in watercolor and acrylics before settling on oil as her preferred medium.  Ketchum is largely self-taught and has refined her skills through workshops with artists she admires. 

“As an artist rooted in the rugged beauty of Southwest Colorado, I strive to capture the dynamic interplay between humanity, nature, and the land.” Working primarily in oil on linen canvas or panels, Bobbe’s paintings are a harmonious blend of realism and expressionism—each brushstroke a deliberate choice to evoke both the physical presence and emotional resonance of her subjects. 

Bobbe’s compositions often feature birds in flight, antique trucks weathered by time, and the resilient animals and ranchers who define rural life. She is fascinated by the way strong lines and dynamic brushwork can convey motion, while careful attention to pattern, proportion, and rhythm brings unity to each scene. “Through these elements, I aim to freeze a fleeting moment—inviting viewers to feel the wind, sense the history, and connect with the enduring spirit of the West.”

Sarah Kennedy expresses her love of the natural world, the beauty of the desert, contemporary and traditional ranch life, rodeo, horses and figurative portraiture through her oil paintings.  A sparkle in the eye, the softness of a draped mane or curved neck, the light that creates drama or luminosity, color that brings excitement or serenity are elements that infuse her work to capture life and feeling.

Kathy Gale creates contemporary art that is a fusion of impressionism and abstraction.   She tells the stories of farmers, migrant workers, and ranch hands at work set against the sweeping vistas of Washington, Idaho, Oregon and Montana.    She uses a variety of media to achieve her characteristic broken color that lends richness and texture to her painting surfaces, including oils, acrylics, gouache, watercolor and pastels. 

Jennifer Wendt paints what she knows best—the animals and nature she enjoys every day operating her own small ranch.  Cattle, horses, dogs, barn cats and wildlife are favorite subjects for this self–taught artist.  She works from her home studio.  She can otherwise be found outdoors riding one of her horses, tending cattle, checking fences, choring, or doing any of the other myriad tasks around the ranch.  Wendt’s observant mind drinks in the surrounding inspiration and translates that into paintings that are exhibited in many of the top shows and exhibitions in the United States.  She has garnered many awards, including several "Best of Shows", "Artist's Choices", and "People's Choices" along the way.

Each day is a gift that Cobb-Kelleher treasures. She strives to capture those special but otherwise missed moments of ranch life — moments that poignantly highlight the struggle for that tenuous and beautiful balance between the world as it is and the world as we wish it to be.

Natalie Campbell captures the beauty of the world around her, primarily working with pastels on black paper.  She infuses each piece with the same passion and energy that drives her. Despite being new to the art world, she is already a nationally award-winning artist and has shown her work locally, nationally and internationally. Natalie looks forward to continuing to exhibit her artwork around the country