Tucker Smith

Tucker Smith was raised on a small farm outside of St. Paul, Minnesota. When he was 12 years old, his family relocated to the western slope of the Wind River Range in Wyoming. Drawing was a hobby for Smith as a child. His family viewed art as a hobby, so he studied math at the University of Wyoming and minored in art. After completing his degree, he moved to Montana to work as a computer programmer and systems analyst for the state. During that time he painted part-time, but he eventually realized that painting was his passion and retired in 1971 to become a professional artist. Smith often spends time in the backcountry gathering subjects, inspired by the beauty of nature. He believes that in nature "one discovers there is color every where, including the apparent voids of light trailing off of wildlife or mountains. Good painters are capable of recognizing the difference. I grew up working on ranches, in proximity to the mountains and wildlife, so it was natural to paint vast landscapes of this region." Smith is a master at depicting wildlife and habitat in balanced and subtle compositions. His painting, The Refuge, is in the permanent collection of the National Museum of Wildlife Art and depicts the elk refuge directly to the east of the building.