Gary Byrd was raised in Southeastern Oklahoma, the son of a veterinarian, and spent endless hours on farms and ranches. His love of Western art was ignited in the early years by visits to the then Cowboy Hall of Fame (National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum) museum in Oklahoma City and the Gilcrease and Philbrook museums in Tulsa. He graduated from Oklahoma State University with Bachelors’ degrees in Biological Science and Advertising and has been a professional artist, albeit part time, selling his paintings since 1993.  Gary has studied under several renowned artists including Mark Maggiori, Greg Beecham, Dustin Van Wechel, Martin Grelle, John Seerey-Lester, Chad Poppleton and Jim Wilcox.

 

In 2012, after a career in the Energy business, Gary and his wife made the decision to pursue his art on a full-time basis. He has since produced a substantial portfolio of diversified works.  His studio is in Sandia Park, NM.

 

He is a member of Oil Painters of America, National Oil and Acrylic Painter’s Society, Portrait Society of America, Rio Grande Art Association and American Plains Artists.

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ARTIST STATEMENT

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A good storyline must first be developed for a painting. Unfortunately, good execution of a subject that is uninteresting usually results in failure. Once I have the idea, I put together the elements of to tell the story in a visually pleasing way. My files contain thousands of source photographs from which I compose each painting. Of course, one has to have the accompanying personal experience to go beyond the limitations of the photograph, which is why color sketches are also used. I do not do many detailed drawings before adding paint. I find I get better results by focusing on a good composition and refining my drawing as I paint while trying not to be too rigid.  I am looking for proper light and color to convey the image. My style is intended to be a bit impressionistic to better interpret what the eye sees, which is a general interpretation in my opinion. My focus is Western themes, but not necessarily redundant subject matter.