The artwork of
Virgil Stephens ranges from dramatic black and white pencil drawings to
delicately hued western paintings with a few whimsical musical paintings
thrown in to reflect and express his own life experiences.
Growing up on
ranches in and around Globe, Arizona, Virgil spent most of his spare
time drawing what life presented him.
From his earliest doodling to his current pencil drawing, conte
drawing, oils and bronzes he recorded the scenes both poignantly mundane
and sublimely humorous that represent the richness of ranch life in
America.
Raising a family didn't
afford the possibility of taking classes, so Virgil started reading
books and studying paintings by famous artist and well known teachers in
his spare time. Common sense
convinced him the high cost of canvas and paint was money better spent
elsewhere and he eventually wound up with a pencil in his hand and spent
the early part of his career concentrating on fine pencil drawings.
Virgil was born
with an ability to look at things more closely than his friends did, and
growing up around, on top of and under horses, calves, ponies, chickens,
pups and kittens, and a plethora of
other non-descript mammals &
unidentifiable insects, allowed him to store up details about anatomy that were more accurate
than any information obtained from books.
His family processed
their own meat and poultry, and he was weaned on cows milk straight from
the udder and strained through a part of the screen left over from the
back porch door. Deer and
elk were plentiful and there was never a shortage of venison in the
freezer. There were many
times when saddling up to gather cattle, Virgil would stuff a camera in
the saddle bags along with a can of Vienna sausages and a roll of T.P.
so as not to miss an opportunity to capture a Kodak moment whenever the
chance afforded itself.
Because of those times
Virgil now has an extensive photographic library of cows, horses,
wildlife, women and children (having two daughters and two sons), rodeo
cowboys of questionable character, and other unique situations
categorized in order of subject matter to draw upon when creating a
piece of artwork.
Although his unique imagery
covers a wide range of subject matter from Native Americans and cowboys
to domestic animals and wildlife, he remains true to his heritage by
portraying only what he knows from first hand experience.
"I love to tell stories through my art and who knows my story
better than me?" he
explains.
In 1992 he started sculpting in
clay and has now added a line of limited edition bronze sculptures,
ranging in concept from ultra-realism to stylized and in 2004
Virgil moved into the world of conte drawings & oils, as a result of
studying under master painter and teacher Lou Maestas.
2005 brought an
expansion into the world of musical art. Virgil grew up with music
and played piano in his local church.
He found whimsical music scenes allowed him to unwind and unravel
on occasion from the tightness of realism.
Many times over the
years Virgil has been asked to teach art, and has successfully added
drawing workshops, for portraiture, horses, and also oil rub-out to an
already busy schedule. The
emphasis of the workshops are to teach how to “see” with the mind’s eye
which in turn creates better artwork in drawing or painting.
“There is just too much bad art out there because artists didn’t
learn how to draw before they picked up a brush, and it’s my goal in
some small way to change that.” says Virgil.
Virgil and his wife
Emily now reside high in the mountains of southern New Mexico, in the
Loma Grande mountain range at the Notevena Ranch and Art Gallery.
Virgil C. Stephens
(575)354-3352 Winter Phone number
(231)869-4233
Summer Phone number
virgil@notevena.com
In the meantime, take my advise and keep your powder dry, and your chin to the wind & don't forget to salute our brave solders all over the world. God Bless America!
