What was it like to live on a 1920s gentleman’s working ranch surrounded by art produced by many of the finest Western artists including Charlie Russell, Frederic Remington and Edward Borein?

Join us for a guided tour of the Quarter Circle A Ranch House and enjoy the genteel surroundings complete with meticulously tended grounds and flower gardens featuring heirloom plants and massive old cottonwoods.  Take time for a walk around the outbuildings (Milk House, Carriage Barn, Saddle Barn, etc.) and Little Goose Creek Lodge.

The Bradford Brinton Memorial & Museum opens its doors earlier this year with a free day on Sunday, May 13, Mother’s Day. No need to wait until Memorial Day weekend to check out this year’s summer exhibition in the Reception Gallery: Kelsey and Oriet Circling the Globe featuring bronzes by T.D. Kelsey and pastels, watercolors, oils and drawings by Julie Oriet.  Museum is open 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Monday to Saturday and noon to 5 p.m. on Sunday.

According to Ken Schuster, Director “this show is so powerful that it literally cannot be restrained within the walls of this gallery, it has escaped these confines and is out holding forth on the grounds of the museum. All joking aside, isn’t that what we get when we visit an engaging exhibition, doesn’t a bit of it go home with us and conjure us back to that special moment in time? T. D. Kelsey and Julie Oriet have given us a show that enthralls us with foreign lands, populated with intriguing animals and engaging individuals. It is sure to draw us back countless times to their magic web spun from bronze, pastel and oil.”

Now hailed as one of the most talented contemporary sculptors in the West, T.D. Kelsey has received no formal art training.  He instead relies on observation and firsthand knowledge and draws his subjects from familiar topics, such as the rodeo, ranch life, and his travels. He is best known for his animal subjects, and much of his work is inspired by his passions for Africa and its wildlife, and a concern for conservation of wildlife worldwide. Kelsey’s passion for creating art is fueled by the many other passions in life, some of which include his Texas ranch: it “gives me the experience that enables me to do Western subjects while enjoying the ranch at the same time.  Wildlife subjects have sent me all over the world for research.  With that comes seeing new country and other cultures that spark new work.  A lot of it requires flying, another passion.”

Julie Oriet is among the West’s most highly respected women artists. She tries to capture the colors and shapes of Western life in her paintings and is best known for her sky-scapes. She also finds inspiration in her travels around the world, with many of her subjects originating from her travels to Africa, Alaska, Italy, Mexico, and Spain. She now resides in Cody, has won the 2002 Artist’s Choice Award at the Buffalo Bill Art Show & Sale and has been featured in Art of the West, Southwest Art, Western Art & Architecture, and Western Art Collector.  She states that “this show is created from years of travel and the excitement of endless ideas gathered far and near.”

The exhibition will be on display from May 13 throughout the summer until Labor Day, September 3, museum open daily.  For more information please call the Museum at 672-3173 or check the website at www.BBMandM.org.