2024 ARTISTS
AMANDA ARATA
“I founded Arata Leather and Silver with the idea that precious things should be used for everyday life. Some days are gentle, most are not, but at the darkest something shiny and made with love can be a small reminder that it will all be okay and if we allow it, God will make it incredible.
I’ve always loved shiny things, I enjoy making them, I enjoying wearing them and I enjoy catching them.”
ANN MINDER
“My name is Ann Minder, I live in Bridgeport, CA with my husband Tim and my three kids, Pawahnee, Tsiidopi & Hugwapi. I was born and raised in Bishop, CA and ended up settling just up the road in Bridgeport, CA.
My Passion is beading. I remember growing up and being taught by my Mom and other family members. It has fascinated me for years. I would bead earrings, hair ties, moccasins, key chains, hat bands, necklaces and anything I could put beads on for my family and friends. I am a busy mother but when I have free time I like to sit a create jewelry. I’m excited to show my work in July and meet other artists.”
ANNE WAITE
“I was born and ranch raised in the eastern Sierra Nevada Mountains by two artistic parents. Both of my parents encouraged me to create from an early age by setting a great example for me. Though my mom paints beautiful works of art and is an excellent seamstress, I found my love of western art while spending many winter evenings in my dad’s shop. My siblings and I loved to pound on scraps of leather or metal as we watched our dad build bits, spurs, and other western items. As I grew, my love of western art remained, but got put on the back burner as I pursued rodeo and raised my family. I am the perfect example that one is never too old to start. I began tooling leather in 2020, and started making western jewelry just a year ago, in 2022. I currently reside in Western Nebraska with my husband and two children, where I teach kindergarten through second grade at a small country school.”
BREANNE CRAIG
Breanne is a commissioned based watercolor portrait artist living in Reno, NV. Her portraits range from horses, dogs and cats to people and everything in between. She feels honored when chosen to create custom wedding invites, clients holiday cards, memorial portraits, retirement gifts, and clients return year after year to add to their families timeless collections of custom portraits. She has donated her time to K9 Partners, paints their retired K9’s and creates custom coloring pages. Connecting with clients through her art and the stories they share is what inspires her.
CATIE KERSHNER
Growing up a rancher’s daughter in rural Southeastern Oregon, Catie Kershner turned her passion for ranching traditions and lifestyle, as well as her creative passions, into a business when she started working with silver over 12 years ago. Primarily focusing on jewelry, Kershner creates pieces with working ranch, rodeo, farm, & agriculture based women in mind. Silver jewelry that’s meant to be worn and withstand the hard work that the women wearing them do daily. Kershner loves to make jewelry that can not only be worn & used, but also stand as a family heirloom & representation of ranching lifestyle in the West. Most importantly, she provides encouragement through social media using real-life experiences about faith in Christ, hope, and perseverance. Kershner’s goals are to use her talents, gifts, and business to encourage other women to pursue Christ and their dreams. She seeks to provide a product and experience that is a reminder to the women purchasing of God’s goodness & grace, as well as, a product that represents their family, heritage, and western lifestyle.
CEILY RAE HIGHBERGER
Ceily Rae Highberger is a working cowgirl from Montana. After graduating from Montana State University with an agricultural degree, she has since worked in the ranching industry all over the Western United States including Wyoming, Oregon, Idaho, California, Utah, and Nevada. What really gets her pumped is being outdoors. Creating art (mainly photography), using the resources she has and fitting it in with the lifestyle she loves is her own personal mission statement. Her brand, C. Rae Photography & Design, is the beginning steps towards facilitating and achieving her dream life.
CHLOE MAE PALMER
“As a child I always had a drive to create. When I wasn’t making things, I loved working with my hands in the dirt. I was fascinated by the cowboy lifestyle I read about and the western black and white films I grew up watching. In college I met the man who would become my husband and he introduced me to cattle, horses, riding, roping, etc.. I’ve grown to love riding and working cattle. As a new mom I’m figuring out what that looks like with a little one tagging along. The longer I’m a part of this community the more respect I have for the history and traditions at the heart of it. I’ve dabbled in many medias but in the past few years bead weaving has become my focus. At first it was a way of supplementing income, but it’s grown into an area of expression where I can push myself to mature as an artist. I’ve worked hard to make my work my own and find unique methods and fresh inspirations within a heavily saturated art form. I have a lot to learn but I think that that’s the beautiful part of creating. It’s true that there isn’t anything new under the sun, but the individual perspective that each person has to offer is what makes this world so beautiful, and embracing that diversity is what makes an artist. I’m so excited to be a part of this community that is celebrating that!”
CLARA SMITH
Clara is a Western Artist and Graphic Designer from Bend, Oregon. She graduated from Oregon State University with a degree in Graphic Design and a minor in Fine Arts. Ever since she was little, Clara was drawing horses and creating. Her love for Western Art and Culture was heavily influenced by her late aunt, Western Artist Joelle Smith, who taught her how to draw and ride horses. Similar to Joelle’s work, Clara strives to document real Western life through her work, documenting culture and traditions of the American Cowboy. The authenticity of her work is very apparent as the subjects are all real people, real horses, set in real places.
ERICA BEBOUT
Braiding started innocently enough one winter when Erica Bebout wanted to use the cold season to make her own gear for her and her client’s horses. After only a few months, that initial idea grew and matured into an insatiable appetite for all things braiding, and thus Bebout Braiding was born. A native to Bakersfield, California, she grew up surrounded by a variety of horsemen and admired their intricate gear—always stealing glances at the Ortega reins hanging in her mentor’s tack room. In years of riding and training, two things were always a fact when it came to tack—good gear was always a good idea, but good gear was always a financial investment. As Bebout Braiding grows, Erica hopes to keep the traditions of rawhide and leather braiding alive so she can continue to provide all riders seeking quality with gear that lasts a lifetime. Currently, Erica works full time in precision agriculture and as a horse trainer in the middle of a cornfield/Iowa.
JALIN NELSON
“Coming from a small town with not much to do opens up the imagination and leaves a lot of room for creativity. I picked up a pencil at a young age and haven’t put it down since. Growing up on the back of a horse and being surrounded by old school cowboys left me no choice but to pick up the western style art. I’m very passionate about the western way of living and wildlife conservation and I believe that reflects strongly in my work.”
JOSEY CARTER NATE
“I grew up in southeast Idaho working and playing on my family’s ranch. Consequently, I love to be outside whenever I can, riding my horse, learning new horsemanship skills and roping. I have a bachelors degree in accounting and currently work for an Ag Lender in Southeast Idaho. I’m not sure how my interest in silver began, but after years in school I had the desire to use my creative and artistic side. I had been wanting to learn a western trade and when I heard about Nevada Miller’s “Fundamentals of Silversmithing” course I signed up, bought tools, and have been all-in ever since! I have had some great opportunities to learn from experienced artists, each of them going above and beyond to help me succeed. What I have loved most about silver is having the option to make beautiful and elaborate items such as jewelry, and also functional items like cowboy gear. I am so glad to have found this way to express my creativity and am excited to continue learning the silversmith trade.”
JOYE LEHEN + MARY LENT
“Throughout growing up in the Eastern Sierras, I’ve been encouraged to utilize my culture to create artwork. At the age of eight, I picked up my grandmother’s needle and started making stitches of beadwork. Using my aunties pieces as references, I find myself following a tradition that is my responsibility to carry out onto future generations. I’m still branching out my techniques and patterns yet in every piece, I still honor my family’s craft.”
JULIA HANSON
“Growing up, I was constantly drawing and making art of one kind or another. Looking back, I was also slowly falling in love with the western lifestyle and agriculture through books, stories, and school. I had wanted to try my hand at leatherwork for years before finally making the dive my sophomore year of college. What started out as making things for myself and friends, turned into custom pieces for friends of friends and then for people I had never met. So J Bar Leather was born.
These days I still take some custom orders, but also love to let my creativity flow and make whatever I can think up. I pull inspiration from the high desert around where we live as well as from silver engraving and traditional scroll work. I’m constantly tweaking my designs to accomplish a combination of functionality and beauty.”
KAILEY KLEIN
Enamored with the western lifestyle from a young age, Kailey Klein grew up creating art that celebrated her rural life and the equine partners she ran wild with. Years later, while studying Agriculture at Oregon State University, Kailey discovered the craft of leather work. Kailey is now the maker and western artist behind the sought after brand, Magpie West Leather Co. On a remote ranch nestled in the Rocky Mountains of Montana, she spends her days as a western creative, cowboy gal, ranch wife, and mother. She gathers inspiration for her one of a kind pieces from the wildflowers, livestock, cowboy culture, unique lifestyle, and rugged beauty of the west.
KIM HUNTER STEED
Kim Hunter Steed is a national award winning and published photographer specializing in western photography. She spent her childhood along the eastern slope of the Sierra Nevada from Owens Valley to Lake Almanor. This is where her love for the mountains and wildlife began. She dabbled in photography in the early 2000’s and poured her heart into it when she moved to Carson Valley, Nevada with her husband in 2018. Her photographs have appeared in Cowboys & Indians magazine, Tahoe Quarterly, Nevada magazine and Birds & Blooms magazine.
LAURA McDANIEL
Having started her creative journey as a child in 4-H, Laura McDaniel has been a maker for a long time. As her 5 children grew and time freed up, Laura began experimenting again with sewing and Second Half Manufacturing was created. Laura is a native Oregonian and a resident of the cowboy town of Prineville. She is surrounded by amazing resources and the creative inspiration of the western culture around her. Laura’s pieces reflect the balance between rugged leather and the beauty of Pendleton wool. “The biggest blessing I have discovered while stepping into this journey has been the people God has introduced into my life.”
LUCILE WEDEKING
Lucile Wedeking is a contemporary oil painter best-known for her interpretations merging the Old and New West. Her work combines a modern dreamscape of color often juxtaposed with historic western imagery pulled from extensive archival treasure hunts.
In addition to her professional studio practice, Lucile enjoys time spent raising registered and pure bred Brangus cattle with her husband and family on their West Texas ranch.
MARY CERISE
“I'm the one woman show behind Hanging Moon Silver, I'm moon to 3 daughters and ranch full time in rural Idaho. I'm beyond grateful for the support and opportunities I've been given by Cowgirl Art Rodear, and I literally cannot wait to attend this year's program. The last two years I tried to attend we've had fire on our range so I'm crossing my fingers and my toes that we've had our fair share of fire and will be ready to roll in July! I am especially looking forward to the face to face conversations I'll have with other makers and artists as well as those amazing and dedicated women behind the face of the Rodear. It's an honor to be a part of such an incredible group of women in an event that really captures the culture of the working west. Cheers to Cowgirl Art Rodear 2023. I look forward to seeing my friends and making many new ones in Bridgeport!”
MEGAN DOHERTY-SPANGLE
“The foothills of the western Sierra Nevada Mountains are where my family and I call home. My husband, children and I have a small cow calf operation while working day jobs in construction. As long as I can remember I have had a longing for and a love of creating. As an artist I have worked with different mediums and methods but always had a longing for Silversmithing. For far too many years life got in the way and that dream was put on the back burner. A couple of years ago I took a leap and started working towards my dream with "Be A Maker School". It gave me the foundation and confidence to pursue my dreams and now thanks to the Cowgirl Art Rodear Scholarship I am blessed to be able to grow and refine my skill set even further. My dream and goal is to create one of a kind family heirloom pieces that carry meaning and love for generations.”
MELISSA LACKORE
“As long as I can remember, I have been doing some form of art work. When I got older, leatherwork became a natural outlet of creative expression for me, and I was very drawn to the idea that I could create beautiful and functional pieces. I have been doing leatherwork for three years now, and it has supported me as a side hustle through college. Now that I have graduated from UNR, I hope to focus on my leather business and continue to grow as an artist and entrepreneur. The most rewarding part of being a craftsman is seeing my work “in the wild,” being enjoyed by those that I have made it for.”
RACHEL ALLISON
“As a kid I didn’t question why creating art was a pleasure, it just was. I am a self-taught artist. I had one high school teacher tell me, ‘Rachel you have your own style, don’t let anyone change that. Be yourself and be original.’ Rusty and I lived and worked on ranches. It was a great way to live and raise our two kids. I love the ranch/rural life; the animals, the land and how it all ties together. A simple and humble pencil has always fascinated me. So much can come from this medium. It takes thought and patience when creating a piece of art. Most of the time I’m drawing from my own photography. This way I can remember everything felt… the subject…the surroundings…and myself. My intentions are to convert how a moment felt with no words. The different values that can be made with graphite pencils in a piece of art can say a lot.”
SAGE KNIGHT
“I’m from the good old town of Elko, Nevada where I work for my Dad on the Devils Gate Ranch. I love that the shirts I make can be worn to my work and is a part of a lifestyle I love.
I’ve always had a desire to be able to make and design a button up shirt. As a little girl I grew up sketching and designing clothes on paper. Last fall I finally was able to make a button up with the help of a talented neighbor. I’ve been enamored with making shirts since! I love learning new things every time I make a shirt and creating new designs. Being able to see a design I have in my head come to life is truly rewarding.”
SHELE JESSEE
“I am a maker, and a doer, a horsewoman, a rancher, a sister and a daughter. I live my life with as much intention as I can, and follow my heart as much as possible. The only things that get in the way of that sometimes are my head, and society. I have studied horsemanship, yoga, nature connection work, primitive skills, equus/life coaching, permaculture and probably more. I am a studier of life, I like to know how to do things and why we are the way we are. And try to live my own life artfully.
I love fashion and believe we deserve the finest goods made of the best materials. These materials to me are linen, cotton, wool and silk. I offer sheepskins and other leather goods. As much as possible I salvage materials from their respective industries.”
SARAH SMITH
Sarah Smith was raised on a commercial cow/calf operation in the foothills of Bakersfield, CA. Over the years she developed a deep passion for creating a variety of items including jewelry, three piece buckle sets and saddle hardware. Sarah has studied under master engravers Jeremiah Watt and Diane Scalese, as well as others. Each piece Sarah makes is handmade, custom to the individual and one of a kind. Her work can be found around the world. Most recently Sarah has studied with Ernie Marsh.
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