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| 555 w. 9000 so. (801) 255-3004 Ancestor Square (435) 673-6363 Sandy, Utah St. George, Utah |
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The decision to become an artist is not always easy. It took Wilson Hurley decades and two
careers before he followed his muse. But his experiences added to his vision, making him one
of the most respected landscape artists in the world and perhaps best known for his
primordial portraits of the American West. One of Hurley’s most monumental accomplishments
is the creation of five unique American vistas, Windows to the West–a series of forty by
sixteen foot triptychs–which hang in the National Cowboy Hall of Fame. These classic
American works are worthy of the Hudson Valley School of Artists’ maxim: "If you wish to see
God’s work, look about you." Hurley was born in Tulsa, the son of a lawyer who was to
become Secretary of War in President Herbert Hoover’s administration. Following a military
career and a World War II assignment he practiced law in New Mexico, where spectacular
views of the West fueled his hobby of painting. Then came the fateful appointment with a
dying client, a terminally ill doctor who consulted Hurley about a will. With the knowledge of
mortality forefront in his mind, Hurley decided to devote the rest of his life to art. This devotion
led him to become one of the leading landscapists of our time, compared to such revered
painters as Albert Bierstadt, Thomas Cole and Thomas Moran. Hurley is a founding member
of the National Academy of Western Art and the recipient of their highest honor, the Prix de
West.
careers before he followed his muse. But his experiences added to his vision, making him one
of the most respected landscape artists in the world and perhaps best known for his
primordial portraits of the American West. One of Hurley’s most monumental accomplishments
is the creation of five unique American vistas, Windows to the West–a series of forty by
sixteen foot triptychs–which hang in the National Cowboy Hall of Fame. These classic
American works are worthy of the Hudson Valley School of Artists’ maxim: "If you wish to see
God’s work, look about you." Hurley was born in Tulsa, the son of a lawyer who was to
become Secretary of War in President Herbert Hoover’s administration. Following a military
career and a World War II assignment he practiced law in New Mexico, where spectacular
views of the West fueled his hobby of painting. Then came the fateful appointment with a
dying client, a terminally ill doctor who consulted Hurley about a will. With the knowledge of
mortality forefront in his mind, Hurley decided to devote the rest of his life to art. This devotion
led him to become one of the leading landscapists of our time, compared to such revered
painters as Albert Bierstadt, Thomas Cole and Thomas Moran. Hurley is a founding member
of the National Academy of Western Art and the recipient of their highest honor, the Prix de
West.
Wilson Hurley
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