Brent Cotton is an award-winning, nationally recognized artist living with his wife and two children in the Bitterroot Valley of Western Montana. Raised on his family's cattle ranch in Idaho, Cotton’s first art lessons were from his watercolorist grandmother. He grew up sketching the cowboys and horses he observed every day. After high-school graduation, Cotton spent several seasons as a hunting and fishing guide in the vast wilderness of Idaho and Alaska, experiences that led to many painting ideas. He focused on wildlife art and taught himself woodcarving, and soon gamefish and songbirds became his specialty.

Today Cotton prefers to paint in the tonalist/luminist style made popular in the late 1800s, seeking to create works that are mood-evoking and have a timeless quality. As an avid outdoorsman he also enjoys painting en plein air and endeavors to work in nature as often as possible. "I became a better artist when I began painting from life,” he says. “It forced me to really observe and train my eyes to filter out the unnecessary information and focus on the major elements."

Cotton’s artwork has garnered several awards at events throughout the country. Recent honors include the Wilson Hurley Landscape Award at the Prix de West Invitational Art Exhibition & Sale; the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum’s Victor Higgins Award; Eiteljorg Museum’s Artist & Patron Choice Award; and the first C.M. Russell Museum CEO Award at the annual C.M. Russell Art Auction in Montana, to name a few.
      The artist’s paintings can be found in numerous private and corporate collections throughout the country and abroad. Some notable collectors include Oprah Winfrey, Tom Brokaw, and Brent Musburger. His work has been the subject of several feature articles in major art and Western lifestyle magazines. Cotton is represented by Tierney Fine Art (Bozeman, MT), Mockingbird Gallery (Bend, OR), Trailside Galleries (online), Hueys Fine Art (Naples, FL), and Illume Gallery West (Philipsburg, MT).
      "I'm inspired by mood and drama and the fleeting effects of light,” Cotton says. “I hope my paintings bring a sense of peace to the viewer, perhaps conjure up a memory. My goal is to show God's glory in my work. He's blessed me so richly, and I'm so fortunate to be making a living doing what I love."