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Growing up in Richmond, VA in the 1950s, Joe’s parents taught him all about truth, justice and the American way. Roy, Hoppy and Gene’s adventures on TV, and the Saturday afternoon westerns Joe attended with his father, were his first powerful impressions of our great West, where the good guys always won. These bigger-than-life images set the stage and influenced Joe’s early art. Throughout his childhood years, a yearning for the West grew within Joe. In the West, anything was possible… and it still is. Joe was thrilled to be stationed in Texas during his enlistment in the Air Force. After leaving the service, Joe worked as a designer and an illustrator in Philadelphia, PA, where he studied with several faculty members of the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts. He also spent five years working as a professional stand-up comedian, performing throughout the Mid-Atlantic and the Midwest States. After a visit to the Brandywine River Museum and seeing N.C. Wyeth’s classic western illustrations, Joe’s head exploded. This trip was the catalyst that started him on his career as a fine artist and influenced him to portray the love of the West that lay dormant in him since childhood.
Relocating to Arizona was a tremendous boost to Joe’s career. He is now able to get firsthand experience by visiting and working on ranches, cattle drives and roundups. Through this, he authentically portrays the working cowboy and cowgirl of today; in addition, his ongoing historical research enables him to bring alive vivid scenes from the Old West.
Joe’s art has been featured in Western Art Collector, Southwest Art, Cowboys & Indians, Western Horseman, Phoenix Magazine, Wild West and True West magazines, and on the TV series Good Morning Arizona and in the Golden Globe Award-winning movie Sideways. In March 2006, SouthwestArt Magazine featured Joe and his cowgirl paintings in their article “Feminine & Tough”. In November 2008, Western Art Collector featured Joe and his buffalo soldiers & black cowboys in their article “Roots of the West”.
In 2005, the Phippen Museum in Prescott, AZ commissioned Joe to paint an original oil painting, “Iron Man”, to be featured in their exhibit “Ranching & Rodeo: The Historical Connections”.
In 2006, the Pearce Western Art Museum in Corsicana, TX purchased Joe’s painting “Locked & Loaded” for their permanent collection
In 2007, Joe’s paintings were juried into “American Art in Miniature” at the Gilcrease Museum, Tulsa OK, “The Best and the Brightest” Fine Art Show at Scottsdale Artists’ School, where Joe won 2nd prize in oils, and the Briscoe Western Art Museum’s “Night of Artists” exhibition in San Antonio, TX.
In 2008, the Pearce Western Art Museum invited Joe to teach a painting workshop at the Museum. The Phippen Museum featured four of Joe’s original oil paintings in their exhibit “Buffalo Soldiers, Vaqueros and Friends”
In 2009, the Phippen Museum in Prescott, AZ invited Joe to participate in their “Miniature Masterpieces” museum exhibit. Scottsdale Artists’ School invited Joe to participate in the “Beaux Arts” exhibit.
In 2010, Joe’s paintings were juried in to the C.M. Russell Museum’s “The Russell: The Sale to Benefit the C.M. Russell Museum” and their “Masters in Miniature” exhibit. The Phippen Museum invited Joe to participate in their “Miniature Masterpieces” exhibit and the Briscoe Western Art Museum invited Joe to participate in their “Night of Artists”.
In 2011, Joe's paintings were juried in to the C.M. Russell Museum's "The Russell: The Sale to Benefit the C.M. Russell Museum" and the Western Masters Art Show in Great Falls, MT. The Phippen Museum invited Joe to participate in their "Miniature Masterpieces" exhibit.