A trail of cherished work

bill walton

May 13 - july 24

An exhibit of western art by Bill Walton (1941-2018) that showcases the diversity of his work. His art career spanned from the mid-1960’s through 2018. Many of these works of art were in storage and have not been on exhibit before. He preferred to depict western scenes that told a story, whether it was dramatic, comedic, or an illustration of the simple tasks typical of daily life in the West. He spent hours reading and studying the history of the wild west. In addition to painting, another passion of his was creating sculpture. He did many sculptures using wax and clay and a few were cast in bronze. Most of these are now in the collection of the Coutts Museum of Art.

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Piece pictured is "The Spring Roundup" by Bill Walton

the 54 barns of highway 54

May 13 - july 24

Barns are an integral part of our farm heritage. Many folk from the mid-west have a facet of their background cut from the farm, even if  their experiences are only from short visits to family farms, they entail memories of dark, quiet corners of the barn and searching out a hidden nest of eggs or locating the newest family of kittens. Barns, as we remember them, are vanishing.  Even since this show began, some have been destroyed by tornadic winds and they are not being rebuilt. The farm scene is changing and our nostalgic feelings for barns increase as the barns decrease in number. These art works show scenes from along Highway 54 as it cuts though Bourbon, Allen, Woodson, Greenwood, and Butler counties. 

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Ten artists have done all these works: Charles Shetlar, Katy Haire, Jacque Williams, June Winchman, Olga Cole, Phyllis Fox Meredith, Esther Nicholson, Jack E. Jeffery, Aileen Engle, and Betty Folkner.

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Piece pictured is "Winter Set" by Jack E. Jeffery.

a heart for horses

jim clements

Jim Clements is an oil painter who considers himself blessed to be a working artist. “To me, painting represents ultimate freedom - so it’s just natural that the wide open spaces, rich history and independent people of the American West translate so well to canvas. My desire is to honor the spirit of the West in each painting I do.”  Jim’s work has won many awards over the years and has been featured in numerous publications including the El Dorado Times, the Wichita Eagle, USA Today, Florida Today, Art Calendar magazine, American Art Collector, Southwest Art, Bridle and Bit, Rodeo Attitude, Derby Now magazine, the  Topeka Capital-Journal and Better Horses magazine.

Saddles by hunn leather

Matt Hunn of  Hunn Leather, located in Augusta, Kansas, takes tanned sides and creates almost every type of leather good imaginable. Though the business used to focus on wholesaling saddles and leather goods, their priority has shifted more to retail sales and custom built items made entirely in their own shop. Hunn Leather can be found at 900 Industrial Rd in Augusta, KS. 

flowers and femininity

This exhibition shows the more delicate side of the Museum's collection. 

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The piece pictured is "Mar Azul" by Don Hazen.

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This exhibition can also be found on our virtual museum tour.