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Inspired by the western and wildlife
scenes surrounding her, Montanan Karen Boylan began to paint as
a hobby and today has become an accomplished artist.
To look at the detailed artwork of
horses, Angus cattle, and wildlife by Karen Boylan, one can’t
help but think she’s had lots of training and spends hours upon
end painting in her studio.
Ironically, Boylan’s life is much
the opposite. A Montana ranch wife and mother of three grown
children, Boylan spends much of her time out amidst the scenes
she paints working with her husband on their ranch near Bozeman,
MT. The couple has a herd of 120 registered Angus cattle and a
few horses. Boylan spends her “free-time” painting in a
makeshift studio from one of the extra bedrooms in their home.
While that may not sound like a
typical artist’s life, Boylan wouldn’t have it any other way.
She says, “I like the balance between ranching and artwork.
Ranching gives me physical activity, and I love being outside
around the cattle and horses,” – which is where much of the
inspiration comes from for her art.
A Hobby
Put On Hold
Boylan’s road to becoming an artist has been a happenstance
journey – which even she didn’t plan. As a young girl, Boylan
had a love for horses – and drawing them – while she was growing
up in Billings, MT. For Boylan, it was mostly a hobby, but her
father recognized “something special” and encouraged her to
study art when it came time to head to college.
However, Boylan had other interests and majored in physical
education at Montana State University instead. To please her
dad, she did tack on a minor in art.
But by the time she graduated
from MSU she was even less interested in art. She tells that the
program was fairly modern, whereas she describes her style as
much more detailed.
Thus, thoughts of art were put on the back burner. In the years
that followed, Boylan married, the couple rented a 5,000 acre
ranch from her father near Red Lodge, MT, and they also were
blessed with two daughters and a son. They spent 14 years
ranching at Red Lodge with a herd of 400 Black Angus cow-calf
pairs.
It was here in the picturesque
setting of the Beartooth Mountains that Boylan’s interest in art
was renewed. She recalls, “There was so much wildlife and
scenery that I started to paint a few pieces for my own home.”
When an artist friend saw Boylan’s work, she encouraged her to
exhibit at local art shows. Boylan was hesitant, but kept the
idea in the back of her mind. Four years later she was ready to
give it a try, and to her surprise, did quite well.
Painting
From Experience
That was twenty years ago, and Boylan has had the artist bug
ever since. About that same time, the Boylan’s relocated to the
Gallatin Valley outside of Bozeman. They’ve continued to ranch
and the scenic setting still gives Karen ample inspiration for
painting.
Horses, wildlife and ranch scenes
dominate most of her work. She frequently carries a camera with
her to capture ideas for future pieces. About four years ago,
she began painting scenes with Angus cattle because she was
getting several requests at art shows for “all black cattle.”
“Most artists paint Hereford
cattle and I can understand why – because the red and white is
such a nice contrast to paint,” says Boylan.
But because of her own personal
ranching experience, she was willing to give the blacks a try.
“Since we raise Angus, I have lots of reference material,” she
says. Today, she has several pieces showcasing Angus cattle.
Boylan says she’s learned the key to painting a good Angus is
the lighting and highlights on the animal as well as making sure
the background offers some color.
Looking ahead, Boylan says she’s
got a long list of pieces she’d like to paint in her mind.
“There are certain scenes I know I’d like to do,” she says.
She looks forward to the
challenge of continually improving her work. In addition to
drawing inspiration from the scenes around her, Boylan counts
the work by Carl Brenders, a wildlife artist from Belgium, as
someone who inspires her. “I’ve always marveled at his paintings
because there is so much detail in them. That has motivated me
to try some of those things myself. I’m a detail person. I once
tried to loosen up my painting style, and it didn’t work for me.
So I stopped fighting it and went back to the detail. The best
thing is to do what you enjoy.”
But for now, her biggest
challenge is finding the time to paint. With just she and her
husband on the ranch, she spends a lot of time outside. She also
has five grandchildren nearby who she makes a top priority. She
says, “For me painting is important, but it gets behind ranch
work and my grandchildren. So I paint whenever I can.”
In addition to painting, Boylan
does her own matting, framing, paperwork for art shows, and
promotion, as well as works with a California company on
reproduction of prints. She says, “The more prints I have the
more time it takes. I’d like to transition to just painting
originals.”
She does aim to produce 5-6 originals per year. “Once I start on
a piece it is hard for me to stop; I don’t like to get away from
it,” Boylan says. Larger pieces can take her 1-2 months.
Because of her limited amount of originals available, Boylan
only has them on display in two small galleries – one at Wall
Drug, SD, and the other at Ennis, MT, a tiny town south of
Bozeman. Boylan’s primary outlet for selling her art is through
the 5 to 6 shows she exhibits at annually, including the NILE in
Billings in October, the Ellensburg, WA, art show and auction
each May; and the Cowboy Christmas Gift Show at the Wrangler
National Finals Rodeo (NFR) every December. This will mark her
sixth year at the NFR, which is a show she really enjoys because
the people in attendance come from all over the country.
Boylan says the rewarding part of
being an artist is the sense of accomplishment from creating
what you set out to do. She adds, “I also like that people enjoy
my work. That’s primarily why I do shows, because I like talking
to the people.”
In addition to offering originals
and litho prints, Boylan has started offering giclee prints on
canvas which can look incredibly close to an original. She also
offers notecards, ceramic tiles and coffee mugs with her artwork
on them.
Among her favorite pieces she
mentions “Shakin’ Out a Loop,” which is of a roper and has been
a popular print. In 2003, it was selected for the NILE Stock
Show and Rodeo poster and promotional material in Billings, MT
and even appeared on a billboard. It was also selected as the
Ellensburg, WA rodeo poster in 2003. This year another of her
paintings was chosen as the rodeo poster to commemorate the 84th
anniversary of the Ellensburg rodeo.
Asked if she’s ever done an
original she wouldn’t sell, Boylan says, “There are some I would
have liked to have kept. But I’m in this as a business, so
keeping them is not an option.”
She concludes, “There’s always the next one though, and with
every painting I try to do a little better. Sometimes I surprise
myself.”
That said, it will be exciting to
watch what Western scene Karen Boylan captures next with her
detailed artistic-style.
To view artwork by Karen Boylan
visit www.kboylanart.com. Contact her at 406-586-1564. |
