Tom Browning

The Art of Tom Browning

6/20/2024 2:09:40 PM

Tom Browning is surrounded by the beautiful Cascade Mountain range comprised of high lakes, vast rivers, and stunning high desert ranch land and valleys of Bend, Oregon. In the winter he spends his time in Scottsdale, Arizona with the arid, tranquil and paintable desert landscape.

Tom received his formal training at the University of Oregon in fine arts in the late 1960s. Later he continued his education by attending workshops with notable artists such as Ned Jacob, Bill Reese, Del Gish, Harley Brown, Jim Reynolds, Sandy Scott, and Scott Christensen. These artists gave Tom a wealth of knowledge not only in painting but also in the business of fine art. Most notably they assisted in his path towards the best galleries and shows. However, it was the advice and mentoring of artist Don Prechtel that enabled Browning to start his professional art career right out of college.

While still in school, Tom became inspired by the work of Montana artist Charlie Russel. He began with pen and ink drawings, then moved to scratchboards in these very early years. His progress led him to experimenting with color, using watercolors which comprised most of his work for the next ten years. While he was still establishing himself in the fine art world Browning began dabbling in gouache and eventually oil paints. He settled on oils as his main medium deciding it would be a good medium for his western and wildlife paintings. It was a successful switch for Tom as he soon had several permanent galleries to show his work. In addition, he began applying for Western Art shows in the Northwest. By 1984 he was voted in as a member of the Northwest Rendezvous of Art in Helena, Montana. This induction to that group of artists was such a lift to Tom that it made him work even more diligently than before to produce the best paintings he could. Needless to say, he won many awards and his art continued to improve.

Tom had a keen interest in the Western genre from the beginning. One of his first paintings in developing this interest was a watercolor of a cowboy riding a horse. That led him to paint numerous ranch scenes that focused on cowboys and their horses as they moved cattle in various terrain and weather conditions. In about 1982 he decided to include pioneer women and children in his western theme. The paintings from this series were very creative and well-received in his galleries in Santa Fe, New Mexico, Scottsdale Arizona, and Carmel, California. These paintings allowed him to become noticed by other artists throughout the nation. He was subsequently invited to participate in the National Academy of Western Art Show in the Cowboy Hall of Fame (National Cowboy and Western Art Museum) in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. Through this recognition of his work many galleries and shows were more interested in his work than ever. He was becoming well known for not only cowboys and horses, but Native Americans, pioneer women, and children with a timeless feeling.

Continuing forward with all the subject matter that he loved Tom was becoming nationally known. In 2007 he was invited to participate in the National Cowboy and Western Art Museum Exhibition and Sale titled Prix de West. It was an honor to be asked to participate for the second time in that show with his peers from many years ago. In 2010 he was awarded the Prix de West Purchase Award for his painting titled 'Dawn of a New Day', thus becoming part of the museum's permanent collection.

Also in 2010, Browning was inducted into the Cowboy Artists of America, an elite organization of Western artists that was currently exhibiting annually at the Phoenix Art Museum in Phoenix, Arizona. He had always followed the founding members of this group and idolized their ability to paint the cowboy. So it was a great honor to join the group and enjoy the camaraderie of the members as they gather for an annual trail ride where they paint, talk art, and prepare for the events that come with each annual show. Tom had won numerous awards such as the Silver Medal for Oil painting before being granted emeritus status in 2022.

Today Tom Browning is still enjoying his time painting the working cowboy life as well as Native American subjects which allow him to use his figure painting skills. Whether it's a portrait of a tribal chief or a beautiful sunset with a young brave in the foreground, he enjoys creating an emotion that helps depict that spiritual time.

Tom currently participates in the National Cowboy and Heritage Museum Prix de West Exhibition and Sale, American Narratives in Fine Art Show, National Museum of Wildlife Art, Woolaroc Retrospective Exhibit and Sale, Horizons West at Legacy Gallery in Scottsdale, and is an emeritus member of the Cowboy Artists of America.