Anton, Bill, 1957-

After seeing the American West for the first time as a seven-year-old, Bill Anton vowed to return for good someday. He left his home in the Midwest some twelve years later and the Arizona high country has been home ever since. Exposed to art early and often, Anton drew constantly from the time he was old enough to hold a pencil. Inevitably, his two great loves in life united when he turned to western art full-time in 1982.

Visiting ranches around Flagstaff and Prescott, he began to ride roundups and brand calves. Local ranchers began calling him when they were shorthanded although Anton never counted himself good enough to be called a "cowboy".

After several years of making a living as an artist, he began getting national exposure but was not satisfied with the progress of his work. Through the influence of some of the country's best painters, he realized painting outside was the only way he would achieve the artistic growth he wanted. The passion and spontaneity needed for Plein Air painting began to help him solve problems in the studio as well. Drawn to the work of Zorn, Sorolla, Payne, and Frank Tenney Johnson, Anton works from field studies whenever possible to achieve the vitality photos cannot match.

Anton's paintings reflect his fascination with the cowboy lifestyle. His work is collected privately in the United States and abroad. Corporate collections featuring his work are Sears, Dupont, State Farm Insurance, Bank of America, Hewlett-Packard and Trust Company of the West. He traditionally shows at the Masters of the American West Fine Art Exhibition and Sale at the Autry National Center, and the Prix de West Invitational Exhibition and Sale at the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City.

This painting by Bill Owen titled, "Top of the Trail" will be in the upcoming Jackson Hole Art Auction on September 19, 2009 at the Center for the Arts in Jackson, Wyoming