Biography - Larraine Strong
A remarkably talented and passionate watercolor artist, Larraine Strong specializes in Western and wildlife art and animal portraits. She combines her love for horses, cowboys, dogs, and the American west into each of her striking and highly detailed works of art. Using a “dry brush” technique, she is able to create astonishing detail and contrast with watercolor paints. It has been said that this unique painting technique brings a “quiet, honest elegance” to her work.
Art has been Larraine’s passion since childhood. She began to draw before she could write. Although largely self-taught, she did take classes in drawing, watercolor, and oil painting while growing up in Milwaukie, Oregon. She was influenced at an early age by her mother who applied color to black and white photographs and by a cowboy neighbor and his daughter who had horses. She eventually broke and trained a horse of her own and avidly participated in 4-H horsemanship.
As an adult, Larraine sharpened her drawing skills by working as a cartographer for nearly 20 years. She now pursues art as a full-time calling spending 4-5 hours a day in her studio. Larraine’s dedication has been rewarded with a high degree of professional recognition. Her work has been exhibited at the prestigious Mountain Oyster Club Contemporary Western Art Show and the FavellMuseum of Western Art. She has been featured in American Artist magazine and numerous newspaper articles.
Larraine lives in southeastern Oregon with her husband, Mark, and their two black Labrador retrievers, Peanut and Sugar. Her surroundings are filled with the animals and landscapes that inspire her work. “Much of my motivation for painting is based on my love for animals and the romance that surrounds the American west. My paintings depict the contemporary West, and I feel very strongly about using my art to preserve the West as a unique and special part of American history that
continues to be lived every day.”