August – September Competition
The artwork of Kathryn Mapes Turner has unfolded from the mountain valley of Jackson Hole, Wyoming. As a daughter of the Northern Rockies, she was born as the fourth generation and raised on the Triangle X Ranch in Grand Teton National Park. She grew up riding the trails of the valley, learning wilderness lore and gaining an eye for landscape. The happy synergy of a receptive spirit and a place of magnificent beauty, set the course for her life. Turner began studying art in her teens from noted American painters. She then left Wyoming to attend the University of Notre Dame, majoring in Studio Arts. She spent an influential semester in Rome, Italy and then studied at the Corcoran School of Art in Washington D.C. She next earned a Master’s degree from the University of Virginia. Turner believes that growing up in Grand Teton National Park, a place with such dramatic light and natural composition, gave her an intimate appreciation for art. “I believe the valley of Jackson Hole evokes expression,” says Turner. She now travels all over the world to paint. With watercolors and oil paints, Turner responds with visual contemplations of beauty in hopes of sharing this love of the sublime with others through her work. She believes that the small beauties we encounter in life awakens something in all of us. Having been passionate about painting since childhood, Turner is now an award winning artist nationally recognized with top honors from the American Impressionist Society, Southeastern Wildlife Exhibition and the National Academy of Equine Art. Her work has been exhibited in the National Museum of Wildlife Art, the Charlie Russell Museum, The Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum and the Leigh Yawkey Woodson Art Museum.
