Curated by Stacey (Durham) Avila, NBC Oklahoma manager of art collections

This exhibit features the art by Texas artist Rikk Traweek, a studio painter and printmaker who has displayed his work in regional and national shows and galleries over his 25-year art career. Traweek refers to the art in this collection on display for the Wigwam Gallery as “stolen art” because he sells almost all the art he produces. His wife has hidden pieces from him to keep for their collection, and this exhibit features the works she has “stolen.”

Read more: nbcwigwam.art/news/traweek

ABOUT THE ARTIST

Rikk Traweek grew up in the agricultural communities of rural west Texas. He earned his bachelor’s degree in fine arts from Texas Tech University, Lubbock, TX, and later a graduate degree from East Texas State and Florida State universities. Primarily a studio painter and print maker since 197 4, Traweek has displayed his work in several regional and national shows and galleries. He also spent many years (25 years) producing several thousand images at his Tampa, FL, studio, which have made their way from the surface of a print to promotional material such as shirts for prominent organizations like the National Education Association and American Bankers Association. Though medium and subject have shifted from time to time, the combination of vibrant colors, direct narratives, witty humor and exceptional craftsmanship make Traweek’s work immediately recognizable as his own. His inexhaustible collection of works also serves as an example of how prolific and transformative his career was and still is in the arts today. Currently, Traweek lives with his wife Dianne and their herd of very spoiled cattle on his Traweek Place Ranch, in Foard County, Texas. He hopes to continue living the life of a rancher, while looking back on the fond memories of his great artistic achievements.