Theodore Van Soelen

Theodore Van Soelen was born in Minnesota and studied at the Pennsylvania Academy of Fine Arts before completing his education in Europe just before World War I. He had ventured West as a young man but by 1916, after crisscrossing the West again, working the range and absorbing the culture of cattlemen, cowboys, and Native Americans, he decided to settle permanently in New Mexico and make ranch life the principal theme of his art. A fine painter, Van Soelen’s work is realistic but always exhibits a particular aptitude for composition. His draftsmanship and attention to detail are hallmarks of his lithography. Van Soelen's knowledge of cowboy culture and work made him an instant favorite in the West and elsewhere. In looking at the complete portfolio, Chuckwagons and Cowboys, one could conclude that Van Soelen’s approach leads directly to the aims and formation of the Cowboy Artists of America - that is, capturing a vanishing way of life. The 18 lithographs in Chuckwagons and Cowboys encompass a wide variety of activities and moments on the ranch. From a quiet view of mule deer in Morning, to branding, shoeing, and, finally, evening round the fire by the chuckwagon, Van Soelen’s lithographs take us on a unique, personal journey through the cowboy’s day and season.

-James Balestrieri