Western traditions meet boundary-pushing style in LCCC art exhibition

CHEYENNE, Wyoming – Merging the romance of the Wild West with a contemporary edge, Colorado artist Will Barker brings a bold, boundary-pushing take on traditional western art to Laramie County Community College this fall.

Barker’s exhibition will be on display from 8 a.m. - 5 p.m. Sept. 20 - Oct. 26 in the Esther and John Clay Fine Arts Gallery on LCCC’s Cheyenne campus. A reception will take place from 12:30 - 1:30 p.m. Oct. 15 in the gallery and adjoining lobby, followed by an artist talk from 1:30-2:30 p.m. in the Surbrugg/Prentice Auditorium. Both events are free and open to the public.

Known for murals and paintings that blend fantasy, history and contemporary flair, Barker draws inspiration from the iconic landscapes and folklore of the West while deliberately pushing past the conventions of the genre. Wyoming art lovers may already be familiar with Barker through his painting “The Handoff,” which won Best in Show at the Cheyenne Frontier Days Old West Museum’s Western Spirit Art Show & Sale. The piece will be featured in the LCCC exhibition.

Barker said part of his approach is to reach audiences who might not traditionally be drawn to western art, by blending spray paint, comic book-inspired elements and contemporary storytelling to make the genre accessible to a broader range of viewers.

“The inspiration is all around me, and spending so much time in the woods and mountains, I can’t help but romanticize the Wild West,” Barker said. “I love traditional western art, but I use those settings and motifs to keep exploring new ideas, compositions and stories. Lately I’ve been inspired by more contemporary, almost neo-western or western noir styles, and I’m trying to break through the traditional approach to pave my own way.”

Raised in Philadelphia and based in Denver, Barker’s path to full-time art was unconventional. He played football at the University of Virginia before a short NFL career with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and Miami Dolphins. After moving to Colorado, the pandemic gave him the chance to focus entirely on art, and his murals now appear throughout Colorado and in locations from California to Georgia.

Visitors to the LCCC exhibition will encounter a mix of oil paintings, narrative scenes and works in spray paint that unite Barker’s studio practice with his public art sensibilities. His pieces often invite viewers to look beyond the surface, whether through humor, surrealism or layered meaning.

“What I strive to do is connect with the audience, whether it’s through something loose and fun, a bit of humor, or a deeper meaning they can see themselves in,” Barker said. “I don’t want my paintings to be surface level, where someone just says, ‘Oh, that looks cool.’ I want people to take a moment to really explore the scene, find their own way through the art and uncover the thoughtful backstories that push beyond the norms of traditional western art.”