Artist Statement
Linda Budge is a painter and an animal lover who combines her passions for art and living creatures to produce works that radiate empathy and painterly grace. Her extensive knowledge of animals and deep experience interacting with them, explains her uncanny ability to capture her subjects so accurately; and also helps to explain why her work carries such emotional power.
Linda’s chosen medium is oil paint and the animals that appear most in her pieces are dogs, burros and various birds; and the wildlife common to the western United States, like cottontail rabbits, desert bighorn sheep, mule deer, and the desert gray wolf. (Now based in central Arizona, she’s originally from Utah and lived in Wyoming and Colorado for a number of years.)
Inspired by her lifelong fascination with animals and immediate access to a swath of picturesque terrain–the kaleidoscopic Sonoran Desert, Linda is often in compositional mode, taking to the wild with her paints and palette and portable easel. Wildlife, like pets and other domesticated animals present random opportunities for paintings. For every piece, though, there are definite conditions that must be met.
“I love being pulled into a painting that has a story, perhaps a mystery,” says Linda. ”Above all, the drama or the play of light, the way it flows from one object to another, is what draws me deeper into a composition. That’s how a subject announces itself to me, and in turn I want that painting to capture the viewer’s rapt attention.”
Every animal depicted in Linda’s paintings is an individual creature, with a distinctive personality, conveyed through its attitude, expression, and habitat.
“I try to pull the essence from an animal and put it on canvass, ” says Linda. When I choose an animal, I want to paint, I study it as closely as I can, its features, its habits, its environment, and focus on the qualities it has that really stand out.”
Linda’s ability to depict the nuances of animals so precisely is no accident. Her love of animals and intuitive relationship with them allows her to forge an emotional connection with her subjects, which comes across clearly in the painting. Also, she has a broad practical and academic experience with animals, including a stint handling sow dogs professionally, some courses in anatomy, and wide exposure to the minutiae of animals in their natural habitat.
Linda has won numerous awards for her work and pieces of hers can be found in the permanent collections of several libraries, museums, and corporations. One of her highest honors was a painting commissioned in 1983 by the State of Wyoming as a gift to President Reagan, with Linda herself presenting it to the President. The painting, of an antelope, hung for many years in the living room of the President’s California residence, and was then moved to the Reagan Library in Simi Valley where it remains to this day.
Linda Budge has spent a lifetime honing her skills as a painter and cultivating her love for animals. Every new picture and every interaction with another four-legged friend has enhanced her knowledge of these creatures and her ability to portray them; and has provided those fortunate enough to have seen her work a unique, even revelatory glimpse into the animal kingdom.
Resume
Education:
University of Utah
Utah State University
Wyoming State University
Workshops with nationally known artists
Shows:
“The Wild West Art Show” at the Phippen Museum (Invitational)
Prescott, AZ.
Western Art Show & Sale at Frontier Days (invitational)
Old West Museum
Cheyenne, Wyo.
Hidden in the Hills Studio Tour
Cave Creek, AZ.
“Art Show at a Dog Show” sponsored by the Sunflower Cluster Kennel Clubs, (juried) Wichita, KS
Anthem Festival of Fine Art
Community Center
Anthem, AZ
Sonoran Festival of Fine Art
Care Free, AZ
American Kennel Club Museum of the Dog (one woman show)
St. Louis, Mo.
Governor’s Art Show (invitational)
Ft. Collins, CO
Western Art Show
North Platte, Nebraska
Game Conservation International (invitational)
San Antonio, TX
Duck’s Unlimited National Wildlife Art Show
Kansas City, Mo.
Wyoming Wildlife Federation
Cheyenne, Wyo.
Oklahoma Art Festival
Tulsa, OK
Society of Animal Artists (juried shows)
Articles:
Image Magazine
Art West Magazine
Wyoming Wildlife Magazine
Prints Magazine
Sirius, a publication of AKC Museum of the Dog
Sports Afield
Business Views, Longmont, Co.
Southwest Art 2008
Dogs in Review 2009 Annual
Covers:
Rocky Mountain Elk Foundation
Fan Fare
Wyoming Wildlife
National Golden Retriever Review
Images
Tel Ad, a Traveler’s Guide
Clumber Spaniel Club of America
Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Assoc.
Sirius, a publication from the AKC Museum of the Dog
Awards:
1st place in oil, North Platte Valley Artist’s Guild Regional Show
1st place in “all antlered and horned animals”, Oklahoma Art Festival
Best in Show at the Western Spirit Art Show & Sale, Old West Museum, Cheyenne, Wy.
Artist of the Year and Best in Show, Oklahoma Ducks Unlimited
5th Annual Best in Show Art Show at the Dog Show, Wichita, Kansas
Best in Show, Casper Regional Art Show, Casper, Wy.
Best in Show, Wyoming Wildlife Federation, First stamp and print
26th Annual Best in Show at the Art Show at the Dog Show, Wichita, Kansas
Colorado Ducks Unlimited, Honoree of the Year for 1999
Limited Edition Prints:
Colorado Ducks Unlimited Great Plains Regional Prints
Ducks Unlimited Green Wing Legacy Prints
Guide Dog Foundation for the Blind in Smith town, New York
Collector Plates for:
Hamiliton
Museums, Library Collections:
Ronald Reagan National Presidential Library
American Kennel Club Museum of the Dog
Guide Dog Foundation for the Blind in Smith town, N.Y., Administrative bldg.
Wyoming State Museum, Cheyenne, Wy.
Laramie County Library, Laramie, Wy.
Cheyenne Library, Cheyenne, Wy.
Professional Organization:
Society of Animal Artists, signature member
Worldwide Nature Artists Group, signature member
Sonoran Art League, juried member
Private Collection:
President and Mrs. Ronald Reagan
Governor and Mrs. Ed Herschler
Secretary of Interior and Mrs. James Watt
Senator and Mrs. Al Simpson