“I'm excited about going into the studio each morning & look forward to putting my heart into each brushstroke.”

BIOGRAPHY
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Whatever the subject matter of his paintings, Ray Swanson reveals something of himself as well. His own story, however, explains much  about how the man behind the canvas has achieved the dreams so many artists share. Ray’s childhood and early years reveal how his artistic heritage and rural upbringing molded him into the artist that he is today.

He grew up on the Swanson farm in southeastern South Dakota, halfway between two of the area’s larger cities, Sioux Falls, South Dakota and Sioux City, Iowa. The Swanson family lived five miles from the nearest town, Alcester, which has a population of 600.

Ray was born in 1937 in a country that was struggling to recover from the Great Depression. The country was still largely agricultural then, and the Swansons were a proud example of an American farm family.

Ray’s paternal grandfather homesteaded the farm after immigrating from Sweden in the late 1800’s. The Swanson descendants were the archetypal tall, blond, muscular Swedes who were not afraid of the hard work it would take to succeed in America. Ray’s father worked from sunup to sundown, and he demanded the same dedication from everyone in his family. Farm chores varied from season to season, but mainly revolved around caring for the animals and the crops. The Swansons milked the cows, fed the cattle, pigs and chickens, and also sowed, cultivated, and harvested corn, oats, soybeans and alfalfa. With their large dairy herd and nickname “Milk Swansons” one of the family could be found in the barn twice a day milking.

The example set by his family, putting in long hours completing the chores on the farm, forever shaped Ray’s work ethic. This work ethic accounts for much of his success as an artist. “You can obtain almost any goal with persistence, hard work and determination, “ insists Ray. Even today, he cannot sit still long without feeling he should be busy. “I am always painting,“ he  says. “Even when I’m not at the easel, I’m planning and composing ideas for paintings.”

A dedicated work ethic was only one trait imbued by his family. In addition, Ray’s strong spiritual and moral foundation established as a child, has provided a solid grounding for his life and his work.

Drawing pictures was as much a part of Ray’s boyhood as his daily chores. From age five, Ray was always busy with a pencil and paper, sketching whatever attracted his interest.

About the time Ray turned twelve, he decided to try painting an oil painting. He had carefully saved $8 to buy a set of paints that he had seen at a store in Sioux Falls. Ray still fondly remembers that day he bought those first tubes of oils and brushes and brought them home. He soon produced a small set of landscapes, scenes from his rural environment. His mother, who recognized his talent, saved all his early sketchbooks and early set of oil despite numerous moves through the years.

An early influence in Ray’s life was his maternal grandfather, whose natural artistic ability was inherited by Ray. During childhood, Ray watched his grandfather illustrating Bible stories with colored pastels on paper. His grandfather also painted oil paintings later in life, which also influenced Ray's future as an artist.

During his teens, Ray found little time to pursue painting and drawing until he found an unexpected avenue while in Alcester High School. Among the high school’s 120 students, there weren’t many with talent like Ray’s. His artistic talent won recognition when he was asked to become the yearbook art editor. Ray also met his future wife, Beverly, at Alcester High School.

When Ray was 19 his father was killed in a tractor accident on their family farm. The family farm was sold and their family moved to California to be near their relatives. This move to California was a pivotal point in Ray’s life. He attended and graduated from college and married his high school sweetheart, Beverly. It didn’t occur to Ray to attend an art school because they were unknown to him at that time.

His earlier interest in oil painting soon surfaced and he started painting evenings after work. At the completion of his first painting in 1960 he was so excited and realized that painting was what he really wanted to do for a career. Many family members encouraged him and complimented his early paintings and he continued to paint. The more he painted, the more he enjoyed it.

“At any given point in my art career, the painting I just finished was the best I could do at that time,” Ray says. “I was not always pleased with the results, but I had a burning desire to keep improving and become a better artist with each painting I produced. As I continued to paint, I did improve, which pleased me. But the biggest factor was the encouragement I received from the people who viewed my art.”

Now that Ray was living in Southern California, he could visit galleries, art shows, frame shops and art supply stores, art-related venues that did not exist in South Dakota in the 50’s. Ray recognized there was so much to learn about the art business. He attacked his “new career” challenge with the same determination with which he had faced so many challenges. As Bev observed other artists’ artwork in the galleries, she realized that Ray had the talent and could be successful as a full-time artist. She became his greatest source of encouragement and promotion. They both worked full-time, so Ray would paint on weekends and from six until midnight each evening. Ray purchased many books about art and art techniques and enrolled in the Famous Artist’s Correspondence Course. In retrospect, Ray realizes that the self-taught route was a harder, slower path to progress. Also, that a good art instructor could have taught in one year what it took him many to learn on his own.

A year and a half after he started painting, he and his brother opened a curio shop in a tourist area near their home. This shop soon became a place to display and sell his early paintings. His brother left the curio shop to pursue a taxidermy business full-time. For the next ten years, Ray and Bev developed this curio shop and art gallery into a very busy and profitable business.

Ray sold many paintings in his own art gallery during the 1960’s and also branched out to sell in other galleries and show in art shows. Ray exhibited at galleries in six states, won several important first place awards in oil and watercolor competitions. He cast 4 bronze sculptures, issued his initial limited edition prints, authorized greeting cards and enjoyed sell-out one-man art shows. However, for Ray and Bev their dearest dreams were fulfilled when they adopted a baby daughter, Pamela, in 1967 and an infant son, Steve in 1971.

Ray continued to improve his landscapes, seascapes, still lifes, Americana, and Indian motifs. Ray taught himself the exacting technique of drybrush watercolor, which combines transparent and opaque application. Many of his ideas for these drybrush watercolors came from travels in the Midwest. Ray’s artistic eye gathered subject matter such as old farmhouses, country schools, barns, wagons and other memorabilia of his youth.

Ray’s paintings became in great demand and from the beginning Ray established one rule: to deliver quality beyond price. He strove always to offer quality that exceeded the monetary value of the painting. His prices always increased slowly and incrementally, protecting his art collectors and adhering to his pricing rule.

Bev says about Ray’s art career, “We were so young, but we set our goals and aspired to reach each one. We proceeded on a steady course even though there was no script to follow, no mentor, no guidebook on what to do to establish a successful art career.” Together, Ray and Bev, leaped upon each emerging opportunity. They took risks and made mistakes, but they never let troubles get them down. Their mutual trust in God’s plan for their lives made them thankful for the good times as well as the bad.

Ray was grateful for the help from his two main galleries, one in Sedona, AZ and one in Carmel, CA. Also the loyalty and trust of dozens of art collectors that bought his work through the years. Though his style and themes have developed throughout his career, his dedication to quality, his respect for his subjects, and his allegiance to his supporters have never faltered.

Ray’s interest in painting people began when he met the Indians of the Southwest. This was a natural artistic progression. “Painting landscapes on location taught me how to see atmospheric perspective and the colors of nature. Still lifes – which were painted from objects set up in my studio – enabled me to learn about painting techniques in a controlled environment. With my Americana artwork, I learned how to paint buildings, vehicles, and other things,” Ray observes. “So when I met the Indians and started painting people, I already knew how to paint their environment and other elements of their lives. All the other components of a painting were established when I started doing figurative themes.” Ray’s growing interest with the Indian people, their lives, and the opportunity to pay tribute to them in his paintings caused a major move. The Swanson family of four moved from Oak Glen, California to Prescott, Arizona in 1973. Ray had rapidly become the country’s premier painter of contemporary Indian life. So he realized that he needed to live closer to the Indian Reservations in the Southwest to more closely observe their daily life.

Ray started making regular driving trips to the Navajo Reservation, which was about a 2- to 3-hour drive from his home. He would drive over the primitive rough Reservation roads and stop at the Navajo hogans to get acquainted. Ray’s quiet, non-aggressive manner was an asset to him in approaching Navajo subjects about doing a painting of them.

Over the years, the Swansons developed lasting friendships with many Native American families on the reservations. While many of these people have modeled for Ray, the involvement went far beyond any business arrangement. What some might say began as chance meetings have turned into lifelong friendships between people who have much in common.

Although Ray has spent most of the time on the 15 million acres of the Navajo reservation, he has made other friends as well. One-tenth the size of the Navajo tribe’s land and completely surrounded by it, is the Hopi Reservation. The Hopi tribe is a distinct and special culture. Ray used his natural reserve and patience to become acquainted with potential Hopi subjects. He would often visit several times before he would ask to paint them. His most popular subject matter was the Hopi Kachina Doll Makers and the Hopi coil basket weavers.

Ray also painted the Yavapai tribe, Apache tribe and in more recent years the Nez Perce of Idaho and the Sioux Indians. His portraits of Indian children, regardless of which tribe, became his most recognized subject matter. The Indian children have amazed and impressed Ray with their contentedness and joy. Ray excels at catching facial expressions and has a perceptive eye for details. The reason he paints more girls than boys is that the little girls are dressed more colorfully and it is easier for them to sit still.

While Ray was busy painting during the 70’s and 80’s, he was being invited to attend many prestigious art shows. In 1975, he won a prize that was probably the greatest turning point in his career. He won the gold medal in watercolor at the National Academy of Western Art at the Cowboy Hall of Fame in Oklahoma City. It was a turning point because he gained the attention of many galleries and collectors that had never heard of him before that time. The widespread public acceptance of his work was gratifying, but Ray also sought the respect of his peers. In 1986, he was asked to join the Cowboy Artists of America, which was the most renown group of artists. Ray has served as their President two times during his 18-year membership. His paintings have won numerous gold and silver medals at the Cowboy Artists of America shows.

Ray had begun painting cowboy subject matter a number of years before he became a member. While living in Prescott, he began to investigate local ranches. His favorite was the ORO Ranch and their hard working cowboys, which have been the subjects for many of his western paintings.

Ray’s western works propel the viewer into the middle of action of their daily activities, whether they are saddling their horses early in the morning, roping, cooking and eating, or taking a break. Such authentic moments tell a simple, pure story of the dedication of these cowboys who themselves are threatened vestiges of the Old West.

During the 1980’s and 1990’s Ray turned his artistic eye to those unique regions of Alaska, Europe, the Middle and Far East that have remained virtually unchanged for centuries. Ray had a desire to paint the people of the world, particularly in rural areas, as they worked hard on their land or with their crafts to earn a living. These subjects inspired Ray to put their lifestyles on canvas. Whether hunting whale in the harsh cold of Alaska, washing clothes at a community water tank in Italy, or plowing a muddy rice field in Nepal, Ray’s subjects showed the shared humanity of all cultures.

There were several successful shows during the 1990’s that showcased his paintings of his foreign subject matter. Trailside Galleries hosted a show and also Pierce Fine Art, both in Scottsdale, AZ. Pierce Fine Art was owned by Ray’s daughter, Pamela and husband, David Pierce. During the ten years that Pamela and David had their gallery, Ray had many one-man shows there. Ray was very delighted that a family member had gone into the art business. It was joy for him to paint for their gallery and shows.

In 1994, his book, The Art of Ray Swanson, was premiered at the Pierce Fine Art Gallery. It was a festive weekend with Navajo families in attendance as well as the writer, designer and publisher of the book. Ray had painted 100 small watercolor paintings that accompanied his limited edition copies of his book.

Numerous awards and honors were given to Ray during these years. One that particularly pleased him was to have his first submission to the American Watercolor Society accepted. That painting received a bronze medal and also granted Ray lifetime membership to the prestigious 124-year old American Watercolor Society of New York City. Many of his images were chosen for posters, book and magazine covers, calendars, note cards, limited edition prints, collector plates and stitchery. His fame was rapidly growing as he became known as the foremost painter of the Southwest Indian tribes. He received gold and silver medals at these shows: National Academy of Western Art, Royal Western Watercolor Exhibit, Northwest Rendezvous of Art, Artists of America Show, Franklin Mint Gallery of Western Art, Phippen Western Art Show, Cowboy Artist of America Exhibit and Sale. Another award received in the mid 1990’s was the Catlin Peace Pipe Award for his artwork that demonstrates the beauty and viability of the American Indians.

During the year 2000 Ray’s artwork was chosen by the Library of Congress Bicentennial in Washington, D.C. as an Arizona Local Legacy, his program was titled, “Artist Depiction of Navajo Children by Ray Swanson.”

Looking back on his successful art career, he realized that he had been documenting history of the life on the Indian Reservations. He did not realize how many changes he would witness during his 40 years of painting Indians. By the year 2000 it was difficult to find a Navajo family traveling to town in a wagon, or seeing huge flock of sheep grazing, or seeing the women dressing in old-style velvet blouses. His friendships with the Native American families were a wonderful added benefit, as well as the friendships with the many clients that had purchased his paintings.

He and Beverly’s family continued to grow as each child married and had children. Steve and Stephanie Swanson had two sons, Cody and Justin. David and Pamela had four children, Victoria, Jacquelyn, Preston and Parker. These grandchildren added much dimension and happiness to their busy lives. In 2002, Ray and Steve began their own print company, Swanson Art and Frames. They were printing their own giclees, which is a very life-like and lasting reproduction on canvas. They would sell these at Art shows and also on the web site. Giclée Reproductions

During the summer of 2004, Ray was bothered with painful back trouble and at Mayo Hospital on October 1, he was diagnosed with multiple myeloma cancer (bone marrow cancer.) He was given a new cancer drug and was in and out of Mayo Hospital three times. He fought a brave battle and everyone tried to save his life. On December 17, 2004, at age 67, he passed on from this life to a better place in Heaven to be with his Lord and Savior, Jesus. His memorial service was held on Dec. 22 and he was buried the following week in Prescott, AZ.