For an artwork to succeed, I think it's imperative to interact with the place or animal I am choosing to portray.
That's the best part of my job; getting out of the studio and understanding and observing the surroundings, the animals, and even the temperature and smells. All these things are what I think about when drawing or painting.
As a child, Karmel loved a new box of crayons and a big piece of paper to draw on, and while she has changed her medium, she still loves to draw (and paint). As a young adult, freshly arrived in rural Colorado, the mountain and prairie landscapes and the animals that filled them inspired Karmel to put pencil to paper and “draw what she saw” every day; horses and cattle, and thus began her career as an artist. Now, after almost 30 years in Colorado, the time is right for a change of scenery; a return to a quiet, country setting with views of the Big Horn mountains and the high plains of northern Wyoming providing a new source of inspiration.
Combining her ability to capture detail, texture, and mood in pencil with her admiration for her equine subjects resulted in a career as a professional artist that has spanned over 20 years.
Karmel has exhibited her work at the Coors Western Art Show, Denver, CO; Buffalo Bill Western Art Show, Cody, WY; Cheyenne Frontier Days Western Art Show, Cheyenne, Wy; Brinton Museum, Big Horn, WY; Cowgirl Up! in Wickenburg, AZ; Mountain Oyster Show, Tucson, AZ and the American Academy of Equine Art, Lexington, KY.
Cowboys & Indians
The Cottage Journal
Southwest Art
Art of the West
Western Art Collector
Western Horseman
Eclectic Horseman
Horses in Art
Magazines
Cowboys & Indians – Art Gallery feature – Nov/Dec 2018
The Cottage Journal – “Drawn to the Arts” Feature Article – Winter 2017
Southwest Art -“Drawing on Determination and Strength”- Feature Article – December 2017
Western Art Collector -“Elemental Art” Group Article
Western Horseman – May 2017 – Cover
Art of the West — Jan/Feb 2011 Feature
Western Art Collector — August 2009 — Cover and Feature
Eclectic Horseman — August 2009 — Cover
Southwest Art Magazine — August 2008 — Feature
Wildlife Art Magazine — May 2008 — Feature
Horses in Art – Fall 2008 — Feature
Western Horseman — January 2008 — Article
Cascade Horseman — January 2007 — Cover and Feature
Australian Quarter Horse — December 07 Feature
The Cultural Times — August 2006 — Cover and Feature
Southwest Art Magazine — June 2006 Artist to Watch
Books
Horse Wise by Cheryl Kimball cover
Of Women and Horses II by Ga Wa Ni Pony Boy
2022 – 2023, Cheyenne Frontier Days Western Art Show and Sale, Cheyenne, WY
2019 – 2022, Hold Your Horses! Exhibition & Sale, Phippen Museum, Prescott, AZ
2004 – Present, Coors Western Art Show Nation Western Stock Show Denver, CO
2018 – Present, Brinton 101 Invitational at the Brinton Museum, Big Horn, WY
2004 – Present, Buffalo Bill Art Show and Sale at the Buffalo Bill Center of the West, Cody, WY
2010, 2018, 2019, Cowgirl Up! at the Desert Caballeros Museum, Wickenburg, AZ
2016-2018, Mountain Oyster Art Show, Tucson, AZ
2016, Art Renewal Center 2016/2017 Salon – Finalist, New Jersey
2016, Art for the Horses –Edyth Horton Memorial Award, Parker, CO
2014-2019, Signature Member Society of Animal Artists, U.S.A
2013, Art Renewal Center 2012/2013 Salon (Honorable Mention), New Jersey
2013, Representing the West People’s Choice, Pueblo, CO
2010, Horses in Art AQHA Hall of Fame, Amarillo, TX
2009, Altermann Galleries Solo Show, Santa Fe, NM
2008, Representing the West, People’s Choice, Honorable Mention 2-D, Pueblo, CO
2004 -Present, Coors Western Art Exhibit & Sale
2005-2008 People’s Choice Award
2008 Featured Artist, Denver, CO
2004 -present, Buffalo Bill Art Show and Sale
2004 People’s Choice Award Cody, WY
2004-2005, Colorado Governors Invitational, Loveland, CO
2003 -2004, Peppertree Art Show, Santa Ynez, CA
2002, American Academy of Equine Art
Else Tuckerman Award for Excellence in Classical Portraiture, Lexington, KY
2001 – 2003 Phippen Western Art Show
2001 2nd Place Drawing
2002 3rd Place Drawing
2003 1st Place Drawing
