Shannon M. Fharnham is a bronze sculptor from the Methow Valley in the North Cascades of Washington state, where she has lived for the past four years. She was raised on a horse and cattle ranch in Sisters, Ore. and received an Agriculture degree from Treasure Valley Community College in Ontario, Ore.
“Living in the beauty of the North Cascades I am surrounded by the inspiration to create realistic western and wildlife art. I enjoy working in the areas of wildlife and western art because they supply an unlimited amount of opportunities and subjects for me as an artist,” says Fharnham. “I primarily do large pieces so that I can bring to them as much realism and detail as possible. I strive to make sculptures that look ready to move at any moment.”
Before starting her art career, she spent 20 years in the equine industry. She spent many years working with Quarter Horses in various capacities. Fharnham has worked as a groom in a dressage barn, managed a Tennessee Walker facility and has trained a number of colts. She is also trained in Equine Assisted Psychotherapy. Presently, she has a number of horses but is focusing on two in particular: her 6-year-old running Quarter Horse in dressage and another 5-year-old running Quarter Horse that is in barrel racing training.
Fharnham started sculpting about 16 years ago in college but does not have any formal art training – she is completely self-taught. She has spent these past years honing the craft and sharpening her skill and talent. In those years, she spent some time working in a bronze foundry, thus learning the process of casting bronze sculptures. The majority of the work is done in plasteline clay, but some pieces also contain wax. In addition, she uses elements from the natural world on many of the wildlife pieces, like sticks and rocks, for more realistic detail. After the clay sculpting is done, it goes to the foundry where they make a mold of the piece. Then it goes through the process of being cast in bronze. After casting, the piece is then patinaed (colored) using various paints, oxides and chemicals that react with heat and color the metal.
Fharnham works out of a studio in Twisp, Wash. and focuses primarily on Western and Wildlife art. She is drawn to Western art because of her background in the horse industry and to wildlife art because of the constant influence of the beauty of the western wilderness.
Fharnham’s artwork can be seen at various places in the Methow Valley, WA including: Confluence Gallery, in Twisp; Heart of the West Gallery in Winthrop; and Winthrop Gallery in Winthrop. To view more of Fharnham’s art, visit www.methowvalleyarts.org. (click on artists and scroll down). The pieces are done in editions of 10 or 15 and the horse pieces can be cast with custom coloring so that you can have your horses' coloring duplicated on to the sculpture. This does require a bit more time and cost but is a wonderful tribute to a specific horse or to a color breed. Commission pieces are also available. Please contact the artist at her studio for more information and pricing, (509) 997-2220.
Copyright © 2008 The NW Horse Source, LLC
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