Cat Deuter was born in southern California and has been sketching since she was young. Her mother has been painting in various mediums for over 60 years and she remembered  seeing her dad's detailed sketch books when she was a child. In 1976 she began copying the photographs from an Edward S. Curtis book using graphite pencils. In 1977 she moved to Rapid City, S.D. where she bought her own camera and began taking photographs at local and distant Pow Wows, Native American gatherings, ranching events, rodeos, and state fairs. Her move to S.D. had expanded her scope of subjects. She was exposed to the "real" life of the Native Peoples, ranch living in the 20th Century, and the adventure of recreating and experiencing past Native American events, the original cowboy lifestyle, and of rendezvous.

Cat was mostly self-taught using her photographs as reference material and has taken some art instruction from oil painters and pastel artists. She has a variety of "How To..." books, but most of her art education is through trial and error, and experience. About 3 years ago she began working in pastel, finding that it works well for landscape and still life paintings. It takes time to research each subject to make sure all aspects of it are correct before she begins working. Each piece of art is rendered in detail, taking 2 days to 6 weeks to complete. After 10 years of working in 'black and white' she discovered colored pencils and oils. She also began doing wildlife portraits, focusing mainly on buffalo. Her artwork has been well received and she has entered many shows in her 30 year professional career, winning awards and becoming recognized by art magazines and galleries.

Her work hangs in the permanent collections of the Center for Western Studies at Augustana College in Sioux Falls, S.D. and with the South Dakota State Fair Board collection. Western Horseman magazine purchased an original pencil portrait of their former publisher, Dick Spencer, and sold limited edition prints through their magazine. Her oil painting, "Vaquero" was featured on the cover of Muzzleloader magazine and she has had a profile article published in Art of the West magazine. Equine Images magazine published an article about her and her work in the Fall of 1988.

ARTIST STATEMENT: "My work is my Joy and it has brought me the freedom to live in and among Nature, presenting a facet of the natural world that I observe in a beautiful and unique way."