● Howard Terpning, 76, was born in Illinois and educated at the Chicago Academy of Fine Arts and the American Academy of Art. He apprenticed with the artist Haddon (Sunny) Sundblom in Chicago (among the many images Sundblom, who died in 1976, created was the modern image of Santa Claus, which he did in 1931 while working for Coca-Cola).
● Among the more prestigious honors Terpning has received:
● Several "Best of Show" awards and gold medals from the Cowboy Artists of America, the Hubbard Art Award for Excellence, the National Academy of Western Art's Prix de West, the Eiteljorg Museum Award for Excellence, and the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Gene Autry Museum (now the Museum of the American West).
● His works are in museums and private collections around the country, including the Phoenix Art Museum, the Tucson Museum of Art, and L.A.'s Museum of the American West.
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● He lives in Tucson with his wife, Marlies. He has three grown children. One of them, Susan, who lives in Santa Fe, New Mexico, has followed in her father's footsteps as a Western artist.
If you paint historical scenes, it's my responsibility to do them accurately because people rely on what I'm saying in the painting. My reputation is built on the accuracy of what I'm doing.
Howard Terpning Artist
