Becky Hicks’ love affair with painting cattle started with the summers and holidays spent on her great grandmother’s ranch.  She spent hours with scissors and stacks of The Cattleman magazines cutting pictures of cows, barns and fences.  Little did she know then that her painting, Gold in the Morning Son, would be featured on the cover someday.  In addition to cattle, Hicks also paints and draws the western and ranch lifestyles, Native Americans, animals and wildlife in oils, watercolors and charcoal. 

Toni James is an award-winning Arizona artist who was born and raised in the valley of the sun. She is the middle child of seven siblings.  James used her artistic talent as her escape from all of the chaos that large families have, all the while developing her drawing skills on her own.  She began to pursue her art seriously in 1995, showing her graphite and colored pencil work in local shows.  She later expanded her mediums and works to include acrylic and oil paintings as well.

Cathy Toot is an oil painter whose work captures the Western way of life and the animals of the American West with authenticity.  She works in the realist tradition, depicting people engaged in ranch life, cowboy culture, wildlife and ranch animals.  She began her artistic journey painting on gourds.  She developed her work into a full-time professional fine art painting career. 

Donna Cox is an award-winning artist who has been drawing animals for as long as she can remember.  Her meticulous attention to detail, as well as an ability to infuse that essential spark of life into her subjects, sets her work apart.  Essentially a self-taught artist, working primarily in oil and pencil, her work reflects her love and respect for wildlife and the environment. She is an avid conservationist.  Her background as a veterinary technician, as well as an enthusiasm for hunting and the outdoors, have greatly contributed to her ability to accurately portray animals in their natural habitat.

Bonnie Shields is a well-known American Western artist known as, “The Tennessee Mule Artist.” She is especially famous for her detailed, humorous, and affectionate artwork focused on mules and donkeys.  Her work stands out because it captures the personality and intelligence of mules, sometimes with narrative flair, sometimes with a cartoon-like twist.

Judy Buckner paints her deep connection to the Southwest, fueled by family time spent in New Mexico, Arizona, California and Colorado, where she draws inspiration for her oil paintings from the people and landscapes. She is also a mural painter, whose work is displayed at Dallas Fort Worth and Love Field airports in Texas, in addition to several restaurants in the area.

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.

Katrina Rae found her passion for creating art working in soft pastel, mixed media, and oils.  She explores representational subjects, with a strong focus on culturally significant themes — especially those involving Native American traditions, people, and ceremonial regalia; western themes and animals.  One of her notable technical innovations is using protective clear coatings that eliminate the need for glass over her pastel and mixed media works.

Mary Ann Cherry, past president of Women Artists of the West (2019-2020), has received the Bronze Medal at the Western Regional Oil Painters of America show, and the Best of the Masters award from the Women Artists of the West. She has been included in the permanent collection of several art museums. She is a Master member/Emeritus of the Women Artists of the West and Signature member of the Pastel Society of America. Cherry’s work is in the permanent collection of several art museums, including the Phippen Western Art Museum in Arizona and the Eastern Idaho Art Museum. She has had a one woman show at the Clymer Art Museum in Washington.

Ellie Freudenstein is best known for her richly colored plein-air and studio landscapes and coastal scenes in oil and watercolor of California’s central coast as well as European scenes.  Her work reflects the American Impressionist tradition with a focus on light, color, and mood in her landscapes. Her lifelong dedication to painting from nature has made her a recognized figure in contemporary plein-air circles, especially in the southwestern United States.

Melody DeBenedictis is an American contemporary fine artist, painter, singer, songwriter, and advocate, best known for her expressive oil paintings that capture the rugged landscapes of the western United States and the wild mustangs that roam them.  She often travels across western rangelands to photograph and experience the wild firsthand, using these experiences as inspiration for her paintings.  DeBenedictis is an advocate for wild horses, using her art and music to bring awareness to their habitats and the challenges they face.

Christy Daniels is a respected bronze sculptor known for her depictions of real life western and wildlife experiences. Her exceptional understanding of animal body language and emotions, not only flow through her pieces but help her tell a story forever preserved in a three– dimensional snapshot.  As well as the body language and necessary conformation, Christy feels "the look in the eye" of her animals is key to drawing the viewer into the story.

Laurel Lake McGuire is an American artist best known for her expressive watercolor paintings created in the realist tradition with a strong focus on landscapes, still life, floral subjects, and plein air work. Her art draws inspiration from her travels and the diverse environments she has experienced across North America.  McGuire’s plein air process involved carrying her gear in an R.V. and pulling it to sites with a wagon so she could paint quickly on location — a method that deeply informs her later studio work.   She uses classic watercolor techniques that evolve into a layered, solid style that conveys both detail and atmosphere.

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.

Barbara Summers Edwards, born and raised in Southeastern Idaho, is a fourth generation native of the American West. Graduating from Utah State University in illustration and working as a freelance illustrator, Barbara evolved as a fine art oil and watercolor painter. Commonly portraying figurative imageries, her painterly, realistic paintings have received numerous awards as they have been exhibited in international, national, regional and state juried, invitational, group and two person exhibits.

The art of Molly Mellinger celebrates and explores the horse. Her connection to horses and horsemanship informs her understanding of movement, balance, and softness—qualities that naturally emerge in her work.  Mellinger is a multidisciplinary artist with a foundation in drawing, an emerging interest in sculpture, and a primary focus on oil painting.  Her paintings are vibrant and textural, rich with color and contrast. Each piece attempts to reconcile the tension between the precise and the abstract, where sensitively rendered forms emerge from painterly, expressive backgrounds. Artistic magic happens in the space between these contrasts. Calculated design and composition meet intuition and play, and the flow found in the process creates a dynamic harmony.  Mellinger strives to establish a sense of equilibrium—where control and fluidity align, much like the unity achieved between horse and rider.

Pat O’Brien is an Arizona artist known for her oil paintings of landscapes, western themes, desert imagery, old vehicles and animals.  She often experiments with palette knife techniques, undercoat painting, color exploration, and expressive brushwork, and sometimes nearly complete abstraction of her subject. 

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.

 Kathryn A. McMahon is an American artist known for her impressionistic oil paintings, especially landscapes and marine scenes. Her work reflects traditional impressionist techniques — distinctive use of light, color, and short brushstrokes to capture the feel of nature.  She has traveled all over the world, always taking her sketching or painting materials with her to inform and inspire her new output.