The name Joe Beeler is one that needs no introduction. A pioneer in the field of Western art, he has combined a lifetime of experience on the range with formal art training at Tulsa university and the Art Center School of Design in California to become one the nation’s preeminent artists working in western genre today. A native of Joplin, Missouri with a hefty dose of Cherokee blood, Beeler’s keen interest in the West manifested itself through his childhood drawings, impressions he experienced while growing up in an area rich with colorful history and the enduring pioneer spirit. His professional career began in illustration at the University of Oklahoma Press. From there, he pursued a career as a full time artist. A one-man show at the Gilcrease Museum in 1960 helped pave the way towards national success and acclaim. Since then he has won multiple awards and has exhibited in most of the nation’s top western art museums including The Wolloroc Museum, National Cowboy Hall of Fame, Montana Historical Society, Charles M. Russell Museum, the Heard, Whitney and the Institute of Texas Cultures. In 1965, he helped found the Cowboy Artists of America, an organization credited with much of the popularity of western art today.Whether sitting at his easel or in the saddle, Joe Beeler has always enjoyed telling a good story and no where is that more apparent than through his art. A self confessed romantic, he strives to go beyond just the technique and convey feeling and mood in both his painting and sculpture. While much of his subject matter is contemporary, he particularly enjoys creating historical scenes. Much of the reference material comes from his own personal collection of Indian artifacts, cowboy paraphernalia and an extensive library of western books. Joe Beeler and his wife Sharon live in Sedona, Arizona. |
