Growing up in the high desert of Colorado, Lori knew from an early age that she wanted to be two things: a cowboy and an artist. She spent her childhood on the family ranch, horseback more than she was afoot, reveling in the beauty of the land, the freedom of childhood and without meaning to, learning the lessons of responsibility, a love of the land and solid work ethic. From an early age, she had a pencil in her hands, wanting to capture the life she loved on paper. Fortunate to have a great art teacher in High School, Lori was encouraged to pursue art as more than a hobby and began entering a few art shows and quick draw events as she raised her family and continued to work and run cattle on the family ranch. Lori put herself through college as a young mom, teaching beginning drawing and watercolor classes as she worked to fit her own art goals in around the craziness of life. It wasn’t until she moved to Kansas and met and married a Texas cowboy that she was finally able to concentrate fully on her work. With their children now grown and their own cows scattered around the country, David encouraged his wife to treat her art as a career, devoting the time and effort that had been lacking until then. Lori studied dry point printing under Phil Epp and is otherwise self-taught. While she enjoys the beauty of color found in pastels and watercolor, the versatility and stark contrasts created by pencils and charcoal continue to call her name and remain her medium of choice.
Lori’s art is unique in that her subject matter is just that. Hers. Her drawings depict her own life and lifestyle, the ups and downs of ranch life and the beauty in the everyday that most don’t ever get the chance to experience. This lends an unspoken authenticity to Lori’s work and speaks to the viewer with a genuine voice. Lori currently teaches drawing workshops and enjoys helping others discover their own love of line and light. She and David continue to live in South Central Kansas, chasing grandkids and raising cattle, training cow horses and drawing in her studio on the ranch.
Recent Exhibition History:
Top 10 finalist for the 2024 Pendleton Roundup Poste
Great Works, Small Wonders 2023, 2024
CGA’s Women’s Work, 2024
American Plains Artists Juried Show 2023, 2024
Meeker Classic, Champion Poster Winner, 2023
The Bosque Classic, 2023
Granbury Lake Art Association Annual Juried Show, 2022, 2023
Creative License, in affiliation with Art Fluent, 2023
Cheyenne Frontier Days Old West Museum, 2022, 2023
Cowboy True, Wichita Falls TX *Drawing Best of Show, May 2023
Cowgirl Gathering, Fort Worth TX, 2023, 2024 *People’s Choice and Purchasers Award, May 2023
Red River Valley Museum’s Annual International Show *Bank of the West Award 2023 and Warrior’s Heart Award, June 2022
Granbury Lake Art Show, *Honorable Mention, November 2022
Juried shows:
Vernon Filley Art Museum, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023
Cheyenne Frontier Days, Old West Museum 2022, 2023
Red River Valley Museum, 2022, 2023
CAL international, Conroe Texas, 2022
March Invitational, Graceful Arts, 2023
Smoky Hill Art Competition, 2023, 2024
Phippen Museum, 2020
Gallery 521, Colorado, Small Works, 2022