Nicole Oquendo
EXPERIENCE THE WEST through Nicole Oquendo's eyes. She paints to show what it is like to be among horses in the great open country, she paints as a means of capturing the blood and bone responses of the horse in images of speed, freedom, alarm, curiosity and exuberance. Her work transforms and transfixes a world that focuses on mental stability, inner calmness, self discovery, and a deeper connection to the world around us. In the horse's alertness and physicality, Nicole recognizes our common nature and a manifestation of what in us is often hidden and complicated. Nicole finds her subjects at rodeos, the sporting show-biz remnants of a practical past. The bucking horse paintings show an adrenaline-born moment when both horse and rider are tapping into their primary resources. They are about hanging onto a rough ride, survival, balance and strength to getting a threat off the back. The cowboy images refers to that forthright, self-reliant, frontier-broaching man with a high moral compass of survival, strength and determination. It refers to living close to the rigors and rhythms of nature, a connection that has increasing value in a world that is getting smaller with easy communication, travel and all in the pursuit of "happiness" through convenience. As we are aware of the changes in the world, we are reminded also of our own deep and instinctive nature. Nicole's favorite times are being out on farms and ranches, absorbing every detail of what she and others are experiencing so that she can capture a time, an emotion, a feeling for the modern cowboy, as she has done since 1985.
Endless nights of painting until dawn is finally paying off for Nicole Oquendo. She is one of the best known western artists on the east coast. Dozens of her Limited Edition Prints have sold out through the years, some as quickly as 2 weeks. Commission sales, which started in 2000, are quickly reaching the thousands. One of the most rewarding compliments are tears from her memorial portraits. Nicole is proud of her extensive global presence among private collectors. While most of her time is consumed by painting, Nicole regularly rides and works on various ranches throughout the West. She combines the basic ingredients of color, value, perspective in a pleasing composition in depicting the real working cowboy and horse. Along with lifting our spirits, Nicole Oquendo's special images keep the magic of the cowboy alive for literally tens of thousands of city folks across the nation and around the world. Nicole is the second generation Massachusetts native, born in 1978 and raised in a time when West Springfield, Massachusetts was once a rural community and now a thing of the past. She now resides outside of Athol, Massachusetts, where she continues to raise and train horses with her children and husband, Tony.
Endless nights of painting until dawn is finally paying off for Nicole Oquendo. She is one of the best known western artists on the east coast. Dozens of her Limited Edition Prints have sold out through the years, some as quickly as 2 weeks. Commission sales, which started in 2000, are quickly reaching the thousands. One of the most rewarding compliments are tears from her memorial portraits. Nicole is proud of her extensive global presence among private collectors. While most of her time is consumed by painting, Nicole regularly rides and works on various ranches throughout the West. She combines the basic ingredients of color, value, perspective in a pleasing composition in depicting the real working cowboy and horse. Along with lifting our spirits, Nicole Oquendo's special images keep the magic of the cowboy alive for literally tens of thousands of city folks across the nation and around the world. Nicole is the second generation Massachusetts native, born in 1978 and raised in a time when West Springfield, Massachusetts was once a rural community and now a thing of the past. She now resides outside of Athol, Massachusetts, where she continues to raise and train horses with her children and husband, Tony.
