Donna Howell-Sickles may have grown up on a ranch, but living the life of a cowgirl was never one of her goals. Yet live it she has—not astride the saddle, but within her studio, where, for more that 30 years, her artwork has focused on the iconic imagery of the American cowgirl. During the course of her career, her artwork has received numerous awards, been featured in museums and major art publications, and, in 2007, she was inducted into the National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame.

It all began when Donna came across a vintage 1930s postcard of a cowgirl riding on horseback that read, “Greetings from a Real Cowgirl of the Ole Southwest!” The image radiated such a sense of energy and vitality that Donna simply couldn’t ignore it. She recalls, “It suddenly struck me that the women depicted in cowgirl art were never portrayed as fearful or conventional. Perhaps that’s because women like Annie Oakley, who were part of the historic Wild West shows, were always a step ahead of their time. These women were riding on horseback in split skirts while their sisters in the audience still hid their ankles and wore corsets.”

In large measure because of that history, cowgirls were, thereafter, seen as women who were willing to break the boundaries, and their likenesses were used to sell everything from coffee to sex. Donna however, envisioned a far more important role for the cowgirl—that of the plucky and wholesome representative of “every woman.”

“As an artist, I had many stories I wanted to tell about women and their world,” she explains. “By clothing them in the garb and gear of the Old West, I was able to move them a half step from reality into the imaginary world of cowgirls, where any challenge can be faced. These are not passive women.”

Neither are they women preoccupied with their own selfish concerns or subject to petulant mood swings. Instead, as shown in “Welcome Home,” Donna’s girls are examples of confident womanhood, living each moment to the full, and gloriously happy to be alive. In “World at Her Feet,” the cheery cowgirl is seated amid an array of tempting options in footwear—a fitting symbol of life’s choices and the many positive directions a woman’s life can take.

That’s not to say that these cowgirls don’t have problems. The painting “Keeping Out the Bears” symbolically depicts every woman’s inevitable confrontation with those aspects of life that are beyond her control. The cowgirl in question is painting her white picket fence red in a determined effort to keep out the bears that represent life’s wild and unpredictable aspects. “As women, we all have things that frighten us, and we do little things to give us a pretense of control—to make ourselves feel safe,” she says.

Identifying such underlying stories and symbolism in Howell-Sickles work is only half the fun. The other half comes from soaking up the energy and enthusiasm that radiates from each canvas, some of which are as large as 5’ x 6’. Using acrylic paint, Donna splashes on the color, with her primary palette being red, white and blue. Occasionally, however, she creates subdued charcoal canvases, as well as etchings and lithographs.

Whatever her choice of media, Donna’s cowgirls can be depended upon to evoke positive vibrations and smiles. “People continue to tell me of the joy they feel when they look at my work,” she says. Equally important, she continues to find joy in her cowgirl subject matter. “I still have stories to tell within this context,” she says. “If I wake up tomorrow and the cowgirls no longer move me, then I’m sure I will move on.” In the meantime, Donna Howell-Sickles will continue to celebrate a woman’s prerogative to live her life the “cowgirl way.”

Donna Howell-Sickles work can be seen on her website at www.donnahowellsickles.com and at the following fine art galleries:

Big Horn Galleries
1167 Sheridan Ave.
Cody, WY 82414
307-527-7587
www.bighorngalleries.com

Big Horn Galleries
37 Tubac Rd.
Tubac, AZ 85646
520-398-9209
www.bighorngalleries.com

McLarry Fine Art
225 Canyon Road
Santa Fe, NM 87501
505-988-1161
www.mclarryfineart.com

The Legacy Gallery
7178 Main Street
Scottsdale, AZ 85251
480-945-1113
www.legacygallery.com

The Legacy Gallery
75 N. Cache
Jackson, WY 83001
307-733-2353
www.legacygallery.com

Telluride Gallery of Fine Art
P.O. Box 1900
Telluride, CO 81435
970-728-3300
www.telluridegallery.com

Texas Art Gallery
5570 West Lovers Lane
Dallas, TX 75209
214-350-8500
www.txartgallery.com

Howell-Sickles Studios
P.O. Box H
St. Jo, TX 76265
877-881-0704