Artist Biographies

HOWARD TERPNING (1927 - )

A contemporary realist working in the narrative painting traditions of Frederic Remington and Charles Russell, Howard Terpning chronicles the history and stories of the American Plains Indians with unusual insight and exceptional detail.

Born in Illinois, Terpning studied painting at the Chicago Academy of Fine Arts and American Academy of Art. Initially receiving acclaim for paintings which appeared as covers on Newsweek and Time magazines, the artist also created some of the most famous movie posters ever painted including Dr. Zhivago and The Sound of Music. The focus of his imagery changed when Terpning moved from the East Coast to Arizona in 1977 and the years since have been devoted to his award-winning Western painting.

Known as the "Storyteller of the Native American," Terpning's accomplishments include major awards won nearly every year since the beginning of his fine art career. He has won eleven Gold and five Silver Awards from the Cowboy Artists of America as well as the Hubbard Award, two Western Art Associates Best-in-Show Awards, five Colt Artists' Choice Awards and a Stetson Artists' Choice. The National Academy of Western Art bestowed two awards as well as their special Prix de West. "The Art of Howard Terpning" (1992) was honored by the National Cowboy Hall of Fame with their award for Outstanding Art Book.

"The American Indian fascinates me...the cultures, artifacts, horses, the way they looked...There's always another story waiting to be told about them, and I feel privileged to be one of their storytellers."

Copyright (c) 1997 Bruce McGaw Graphics. All rights reserved.