Texas native Ann Kraft Walker is primarily known for her realistic still life paintings. She turned to painting later in life, taking workshops, painting models from life, and attending conferences and group sessions, which began the never-ending process of learning to paint. Walker stages her arrangements in her studio and paints mostly from life. She often inserts little birds in her compositions, and for that, she relies on photos. She is fortunate to have a brother-in-law who loves to photograph birds and generously shares his photos with her.
“Inspiration seems to strike out of the blue,” Walker says. “In Mix N Match, a rancher down the road gave me the white-tailed skull and a friend from a ranch up the road gifted the axis hide to me. Even though they are different breeds, I felt they paired beautifully. My son brought a large heart-shaped rock to me from a backpacking trip. The verse in Ezekiel that talks about God removing our hearts of stone and giving us a heart of flesh was the inspiration behind Shoot Straight My Heart (Ezekiel 36:26).” This painting will be shown in the Oil Painters of America Masters Show at Illume Gallery West in Philipsburg, Montana, in August.
Walker says she has a sensitive nature, drawn to beauty in simple things and ever on the hunt for painting ideas. Her oldest granddaughter is the subject of This Moment. This Child. The painting had a plain background which Walker was not satisfied with. One early morning she found the new moon and Venus so lovely she decided to put that in the background, along with the hills surrounding her home.
“I consider it a profound privilege to be an artist,” she says. “To attempt to capture something that conveys a moment of simple, quiet beauty is what I’m after.” —
Want to See More?
www.annkraftwalker.com
Represented by InSight Gallery
214 W. Main Street | Fredericksburg, TX 78624
(830) 997-9920 | www.insightgallery.com
Facebook: /AnnKraftWalker
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