William Matthews

William Matthews was born in New York City in 1949 and moved with his family to San Francisco in the late fifties. Since 1980, he has lived in the mountains outside Denver where he pursues painting full time. For much of his subject matter, the artist aggressively pursues the people and settings of the great ranches throughout the West. His resulting work has been described as a subtle, philosophical study of western ranch life with a depth few others match.

Matthews' work is included in numerous private and public collections including the Gene Autry Western Heritage Museum, the National Cowboy Hall of Fame, the Denver Art Museum and the Buffalo Bill Historical Center. He was the first-time recipient of the Mary Belle Grant Award, for artistic achievement and community involvement at the Coors Western Art Exhibit and Sale. Recently, Matthews collaborated with Pulitzer Prize winning novelist Annie Proulx, contributing illustrations for her collection of short stories, Close Range.