Month: March 2022

Canyon de Chelly

5 Most Famous Paintings of the Southwest

Written by Fine Art on . Posted in southwest painting, Southwestern Art.

Utah, Arizona, New Mexico, California, Colorado, Texas, and Nevada make up the American Southwest. This area is famous for its rich Native American culture, and much of the art from the region celebrates the people indigenous to this area. 

Fine Art Publishing sells pieces of art from many famous artists who were influenced by the unique geography of this area. Both Native Americans and non-Native artists use the desert landscapes of this area as inspiration to create beautiful art.

Southwestern paintings from Fine Art Publishing include original artwork and high-quality prints. Below, you will find more information on some of the most famous paintings of the Southwest. 

1.   Eagle Nest Lake

Celebrated artist Ernest L. Blumenschein created this work in 1933. Worth an estimated $300,000, the painting depicts the picturesque Eagle Nest Lake area. 

The lake is north of Taos, New Mexico, an area known for fine art and Native American spiritual traditions. Blumenschein often depicted the scenic Eagle Nest Lake area in his paintings. 

2.   Crowd at Horse Race

Created by artist Oscar E. Berninghaus in 1946, this painting depicts the annual horse race that takes place during the San Geronimo Festival in Taos, New Mexico, every September.

Worth more than $600,000, this painting captures a historical view of the rugged Taos landscape and the Native American people who called the American Southwest home. This art print is known for its color, tone, technique, and emotion. 

3.   Canyon de Chelly

Canyon de Chelly is one of the most famous paintings of the Southwest. The piece captures the unique red rock landscape found in Northeastern Arizona. Edgar Alwin Payne created the distinctive painting in 1941. 

The original painting is worth an estimated $80,000 and demonstrates the artist’s unique understanding of desert landscapes. 

4.   Canyon Ranch

Executed in 1941, Canyon Ranch is one of Maynard Dixon’s most famous works of art. The print captures the vast desert landscape of Arizona and New Mexico. The art print uses a neutral color palette, unlike many paintings of the Southwest. 

The painting has an estimated worth of up to $250,000 and was inspired by the artist’s first visit to the American Southwest in 1900.

5.   Indian/Horse/Teepee

Executed by Taos Society of Arts founding member E. Irving Couse, this beautiful painting captures the historic way of life of Native Americans in New Mexico. Known for its vibrant color scheme, the print depicts a man and horse standing next to a teepee. 

The artist likely created this painting, now valued at $35,000, while looking east from his home in Taos.

Are you searching for affordable paintings of the Southwest? The influence of Southwestern art on home décor is substantial, and many people choose to incorporate Native American art into their home’s interior design. 

Fine Art Publishing features artists prominent in the region, including Bill Anton, Bonnie Marris, and John Coleman. We feature art depicting landscapes, cowboys, Native American life, and more. Visit our website today to discover a unique print to enhance the décor of your home or office.

charles marion russell painting

A Brief Look into the Life of the Cowboy Artist: Charles Marion Russell

Written by Fine Art on . Posted in Cowboy Artists.

Born in 1864 near St. Louis, Charles Marion Russell became an internationally revered artist of the American West. He was a prolific painter and sculptor, creating an estimated 4,000 renditions of cowboys, Indians, and Western landscapes in paintings, drawings, and sculptures in wax, clay, and plaster, some of which were also cast in bronze.

The Dreamer Becomes a Cowboy

Following a childhood in which he read about the Old West and dreamed of becoming a cowboy, Russell arrived in Montana at age 16. He worked as a sheep tender, then became a night wrangler for a cattle roundup. There he met Jake Hoover, a local hunter, with whom he became lifelong friends and learned much about the ways of the American West.

The harsh winter of 1886 changed Russell’s life. Working as a cattle hand, he was inspired to paint. When the ranch owner asked the ranch foreman how their cattle dealt with the weather, the foreman sent one of Russell’s small watercolors depicting a gaunt steer standing beneath a gray winter sky while being watched by wolves. The ranch owner passed the painting around to friends, and it wound up on display in a Helena shop window.

Russell started receiving commissions, changing the focus of his career. (A painting he later made of the same scene, Waiting for a Chinook, became one of his most famous.)

The first of many works Russell created of the Plains Indians resulted from spending the summer of 1888 with the Blackfeet, Piegan, and Blood Indians in Alberta, Canada. Now a Western artist, he continued working as a cowboy and wrangler until marrying Nancy Cooper in 1896.

From Cowboy to Cowboy Artist

They settled in Great Falls, Montana, and Russell began painting and sculpting full-time. He filled his studio with Indian clothing, weapons, tools, cowboy gear, and other props from the Old West.

Emerging at a time when city dwellers were intensely interested in the Wild West, Russell held shows throughout the United States and overseas, booked by his wife, Nancy. He was soon both a local celebrity and an internationally acclaimed artist.

Called the “cowboy artist,” Charles Marion Russell was also a storyteller, author, historian, advocate of Native Americans, environmentalist, conservationist, outdoorsman, and philosopher. After he and his wife adopted a son, Jack, in 1916, he added “doting father” to that list.

Russell died on October 24, 1926, at his Montana home. More than 2,000 paintings of cowboys, personal objects, and artifacts are housed in the C.M. Russell Museum in Great Falls.

You can view other significant collections of Russell’s works at the Montana Historical Society in Helena, Montana; the Buffalo Bill Center of the West in Cody, Wyoming; and the Amon Carter Museum of American Art and Sid Richardson Museum, both in Fort Worth, Texas.

Learn about Frederic Remington’s “The Fall of the Cowboy” and other works of art at Fine Art Publishing in Tucson, AZ.

To view and purchase fine art canvas prints by Charles Marion Russell, along with other cowboy paintings for sale, call Fine Art Publishing at (520) 274-4992.