Artist of the Month

The Museum of Western Art will host its monthly Artist of the Month reception on Thursday, February, 18, 2016 at 5:30 p.m. with Cowboy Artist Fred Harman. Non-museum members are invited to attend with a suggested donation of $10. Fred Harman (1902 ? 1982), a founding member of the Cowboy Artists of America, had no formal art training. At one time a colleague of Walt Disney, Harman is perhaps best known for his popular Red Ryder comic strip, which began as Bronc Peeler in 1934. In 1938, Bronc Peeler morphed into Red Ryder. The comic strip was so popular that comic books, Big Little Books, radio programs and more evolved out of it. Harman began painting in 1964 after he retired from the comic strip. The Fred Harman Art Museum is located in Pagosa Springs, Colorado. The Museum?s speaker for the February 18 event will be Fred Egloff, a former president of Westerners International, the oldest, largest and most active Western history organizations worldwide. In fact, Westerners International has named Egloff a living legend. Egloff authored El Paso Lawman which was voted among the 100 outstanding non-fiction Westerns of the 20th century. ?Fred Harman continues to be a major figure in Western Americana. Those that don?t recognize his name will recognize his creations - Red Ryder and Little Beaver.? The award-winning Museum of Western Art is located at 1550 Bandera Highway in Kerrville. Hours are 10:00 a.m. until 4:00 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday. For more information, please call 830-896-2553.