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Written by Todd Wilkinson in the December/January 2026 edition of Western Art & Architecture
Wyoming native Joel Ostlind is a self-taught artist who spent much of his life herding cattle on horses throughout the American West. He holds degrees in Soil Science and Ranch Management, but this tall cowboy always carried a sketchbook to record his intimacy with the land in exquisite detail and authenticity.
In 1990, he bid farewell to his cowboy days and moved with his wife and family to a home outside Big Horn, Wyoming. He signed up for a printmaking class at Sheridan College and built a home studio in the Big Horn Mountains. His drawings found new life as copper plate etchings depicting the full range of Western life, from Native American lodges to contemporary fly fishermen, telemark skiers and horses grazing under Wyoming skies. Ostlind considers himself first and foremost an etcher, his style compared to Rembrandt’s expressive draftsmanship. However, he is also a painter, and recently completed a large mural in his hometown of Sheridan, WY.
Western Art & Architecture featured the paintings of Joel Ostlind in the December/January edition in “When ‘Less is More’ Goes Big” written by Todd Wilkinson.
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Learn more about Joel Ostlind here.
