
A Look Back at Michele Farrier’s Time as Artist-in-Residence
A native of northern California, Michele Farrier now calls Cortez, Colorado home. She received a BA in Studio Art from the University of California-Davis. After twenty years of teaching art to K-12 students in the Teton County School District, she retired to become a full-time artist. Farrier often paints en plein air (in the open air), only putting finishing touches on the artwork back in her studio.
The same year Farrier retired, she received a call from the Buffalo Bill Center of the West informing her she had been accepted into the artist-in-residence program. That was four years ago. Since then, Farrier has returned to participate in the program every summer. This year, the Center hosted Farrier as an artist-in-residence during the week of July 1 through July 6. Farrier uses the works in the gallery for inspiration and as a learning tool to create her rendition of a focused area. Her subject of choice this year – Harvey T. Dunn’s W.H.D. Koerner at His Easel.

Curatorial Assistant, Nicole Harrison, sat down with Farrier for a brief question and answer session to discuss the artist’s experiences with the program and what inspires her.
Question: What inspires you to create art?
Farrier: The opportunity to slow down and observe, to see the light and shadow patterns in everything.
Question: what has been your favorite part of this year’s artist-in-residence program?
Farrier: Sharing my passion with new people and being given the incredible opportunity to learn from each interaction is exciting. I love seeing visitors react to using a red lens to view a painting. The red lens helps determine the gray scale of a painting and what the darkest and lightest shade of color is.
Question: What is the most interesting question or experience you have had during this year’s program?
Farrier: I spoke with a young student who had just graduated high school. I learned he is currently studying under my mentor in Austin. I asked him what he thought of the painting. To see such a young peer so interested in art and to be able to learn from him was a wonderful experience.
The Buffalo Bill Center of the West is thrilled to have Farrier as a returning artist. Farrier looks forward to many more years as an summer artist-in-residence at the Center. To learn more about Michele Farrier, please visit her website www.michelezfarrier.com.
The Center of the West’s Artist-in-Residence program is supported in part by an award from the Wyoming Arts Council through funding from the National Endowment for the Arts.
Written By
Nicole Todd
Nicole Todd was formerly the Curatorial Assistant for the Whitney Western Art Museum. She graduated from the University of Oklahoma, with bachelor’s degrees in Zoology and Art History, and a master’s degree in Art History, with a focus on western American art and a specialization in Will James’s art. As Curatorial Assistant, Nicole engaged in art historical research, supported educational programming, answered public inquiries, and contributed to the Whitney’s online presence.