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The National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame – the only museum in the world dedicated to honoring women of the American West who have displayed extraordinary courage in their trailblazing efforts – has announced the 2016 National Cowgirl Hall of Fame Inductees, who will be honored at the 41st annual induction ceremony on Thursday, Oct. 27, at the Will Rogers Memorial Center’s Round Up Inn in Fort Worth, Texas. Western sculptor and painter Veryl Goodnight has been selected as a 2016 inductee.
Veryl Goodnight, “High Country Summer – Maquette 7/30,” bronze, 13 x 10 inches
Goodnight’s work is currently on view at the Hall of Fame’s Anne W. Marion Gallery from July 22 – Oct. 30, 2016. The exhibition, No Turning Back: The Art of Veryl Goodnight, will include around 15 sculptures and 11 paintings. The exhibit will feature her life-size sculpture “A New Beginning” as well as her work “Passing Times”, and a small casting of “No Turning Back”. See the The National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame website for more information.
Veryl Goodnight: Goodnight has dedicated her life to exploring the relationships of pioneer women to wildlife and the West through bronze sculptures and oil paintings. As a wildlife rehabilitator, Goodnight has always been close to the natural world. As an artist she has utilized that knowledge to bring authenticity to her work on over 200 sculptures and 20 monuments. Her award-winning pieces have been displayed throughout the country at museums, zoos, universities, presidential libraries, and in places as far-reaching as Beijing and Botswana. Her most famous piece, “The Day the Wall Came Down,” is a larger-than-life bronze statue depicting five horses leaping over the crumbled Berlin Wall. It currently sits outside the Allied Museum in Berlin with matching castings placed outside the George Bush Presidential Library in College Station, Texas and at the entrance to the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) headquarters building in Langley, Virginia.
The National Cowgirl Hall of Fame selection process is rigorous and lengthy. Out of a competitive list, which consistently grows with each new nomination, only four or five successful candidates per calendar year are honored with the prestigious distinction of becoming a National Cowgirl Hall of Fame Inductee. The Hall of Fame is grouped into several categories including: artists and writers, champions and competitive performers, contributors to the cowgirl legacy, entertainers, ranchers (stewards of land and livestock), and trailblazers and pioneers. Since 1975, over 220 women have been inducted.
“These four remarkable women join a legendary group of existing Honorees at the Museum,” said Patricia Riley, Executive Director, National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame. “We are delighted to welcome these cowgirls from Colorado, Arizona, Texas and California, and look forward to sharing their stories with the world.”
The Induction luncheon and ceremony is the largest event for the Hall of Fame, and draws approximately 700-1,000 attendees each year. The event will kick off at 10:00 a.m. with the opening of vendor booths and a champagne reception followed by the induction luncheon and ceremony. For ticket information, please contact Emmy Lou Prescott at emmylou@cowgirl.net or call 817-509-8965.
Read more about the 2016 inductees as well as Veryl’s exhibition.
