ArtPro Business & Marketing Clinic
"What can I say? She's the nicest, kindest and most generous person you'll ever meet. She's my other half - the half that keeps me balanced, focused and motivated. Besides keeping me in line, she also teaches other artists how to market their work, is a devoted mother, grandmother and even though she won't take my word for it, she's a very gifted writer." MS
Leanin' Tree is by far and away the best publisher an artist could ever hope for. I've had the good fortune to be associated with this bunch for nearly thirty years which means I've been with them longer than I have some family members. My plan is to stay in the game another thirty years!
Cowboy Cartoonists International
CCI is a totally zany band of cartoonists who have been together for over fifteen years. They're from all over North America and when we land in Vegas for our annual show during Cowboy Christmas - well, let's just say the NFR isn't the only rodeo in town!
Now this guy has some real talent and if he doesn't get himself too broke up fightin' bulls over the next few years, he's gonna take the cartoonist world by storm. CrAsh is also something of celebrity in his native Canada where he has his own talk show. That's interesting because for the first few years I knew him, he hardly ever spoke!
Ted, alias ToJo O'Malley, is the funniest human being I've ever been around - and I've been around a lot of funny people. Ted was a child actor and had regular roles in Bewitched, Little House on the Prairie and even did a stint on the Johnny Carson Show. He's all grown up now and is the president of CCI and the one member who keeps us rolling on the floor (literally!) laughing!
Don't ever believe a word he tells you cause it just aint true - but that's probably what make his art so good. Painter, photographer, sculptor and now cookbook author, Bootsi has done it all and done it well.
The official Tennessee Mule Artist who lives in Idaho and spends more time on the road than any other artist I know. Somehow, she manages to sculpt life size mules and illustrate several books every year. She's a pretty amazing woman!
Owned and operated by Lee and Sharon Henry, two of the best friends this old cowboy ever had. They make and sell some of the best gourmet food on the market and run a really cool western B&B called the Stagecoach Inn. It's like stepping back in time.
Jack is a terrific artist, in fact, he's my favorite painter this side of Heaven. If you've ever been to Toppenish, WA, you've probably seen some of Jack's murals. He's one heck of an artist and he and his lovely wife, Annette are a real hoot to hang out with!
Ben almost has more talent than he knows what to do with. Besides painting fartin' cows and cowboys, Ben is an awesome musician with several CDs to his credit. He has a wonderful coffee table book out and just recently illustrated a children's book. He's also a barrel of fun to be around.
Cowboy Poet extraordinaire, Andy's a man of many hats. He and his brother, Jim are hosts for the radio show, Clear Out West, and both guys are longtime farriers. I was plumb tickled when Andy decided to us "Shine on Harvey's Moon" on one of his CDs. Then he went a wrote a riot of a poem about old Harvey as a bonus. Check out his site and buy a CD!
A good friend and a heck of an entertainer, Gary is a world champion yodeler, award winning song writer and one of the funniest guys you'll ever gather round the campfire with! And somehow, he lucked out and married Miss Can't Dance (Candace) and the rest, as they say, is history.
Polly Kennedy
When Polly shows up to her booth at the Sands during the Cowboy Christmas show, her customers have already been there looking for her! A heck of woodcarver and another one of those artists who live on the road - Polly is a hoot to hang out with. She's got some road stories that will have you howling! Watch for her art in the new Cow Creek Merc.
We had the pleasure of meeting Jim at one of the earliest CCI shows held in Cody, Wyoming nearly 15 years ago. In fact, he took home a gold medal for one of his watercolors at that show. Well, Jim's back, is an official member of the CCI now and his stuff is still as funny as it always was. Jim is one of the driving forces behind the new Ritzville Washington art show. Check out his site to learn more.