Artist Statement
Throughout my 30-year career as a professional artist, I have chosen to paint animals. Since moving to Arizona, my portfolio of dogs, cats, and big game animals has expanded to include desert rabbits, burros and javelina. Expression is the quality I aim for, and I must get it because someone along the way dubbed me the “Master of Expression” and it stuck. Whether it’s a deer or a dog, when I look at an animal, I want to convey its attitude and expression of that moment to the viewer. You might see a deer watching you with fragile curiosity, a bobcat with arrogance, a dog with loving anticipation, or a cat with disdain.
One of the first questions I’m asked is, “Do you use photographs?” Yep, I do. The camera is just another tool that I use to produce a finished painting. As an artist, I am interested in how I see shapes, values, color, 
light, and edges. Photographs can distort all of those elements. But, cameras for an animal artist are a necessary evil, because animals jump and run before you can copy a foot, or an ear, or even an attitude. As a wildlife artist, I use photographs as a reference -- I don’t just copy them. Nor do I use a slide projector or enlarger. I am “old school” and I believe in good drawing, good design and good composition. Using a photograph artistically is a real challenge, and it has taken me years to learn how to use them properly.
Plein aire painting in the desert is an interesting experience. You don’t want to forget sun screen, an umbrella or water. But it is well worth the time. The desert is a very unique and beautiful place, and the shapes here with the saguaro, the wispy trees and the prickly plants are very different than the Rocky Mountains or the high plains where I have painted before. The sun and light are very bright, hot, and intense. So, of course, the shadows which are so important to an animal, are just as important to me, the artist, in creating a beautiful painting. The drama is in the contrast of light and dark, sun and shadow.
I have admired many artists. Some of my favorites are Mary Cassatt, Carl Rungius, Poortvliet, Heinrich von Zuegel, Morgan Weistling, and David Leffel. I have been honored that I have been able to study under David, and the notes I’ve taken during his workshops are well-worn.
I am truly grateful that God has given me the gift of art and the ability to communicate through my paintings. It is always a joy for me when I can bring an animal to life by sharing its spontaneous sense of expression with the viewer.
Artist Biography
Linda Budge paints expression. The subjects usually have four legs and a variety of ears, noses and tails. Sometimes, they might be found creeping through the desert, perched on a saguaro, or just standing in somebody’s back yard. Wherever they are, Linda has learned to capture their look, their expression, and their attitude!
Linda grew up in Salt Lake City, Utah where she learned to sketch and paint animals at her family’s cabin in the Wasatch Mountains. She didn’t start living her dream of becoming an artist until she moved to St. Louis, Mo. where she enrolled in a correspondence course from the Famous Artists School. She officially became a professional artist at the local mall doing cat portraits for $5.00. When she and her husband moved to Ohio, she became interested in show dogs, and applied for a license to handle dogs professionally. Learning confirmation and expression and the proper way for a dog to stand, were important, as each breed is very unique. Expression in the dog could mean the difference between first and second place in a competition. Although Linda does not handle dogs professionally any longer, her expertise in the dog world has given her a distinct edge for painting accurately, and most importantly, for capturing expression.
After moving to Laramie, Wyoming, she was inspired by the wide open spaces and local wildlife. She and a friend opened a small gallery called the Blackburn that carried 20 or so artists, but it was soon obvious that running a gallery and being a full-time artist were incompatible. Linda opted to paint as often as time allowed, and Blackburn was closed. As her work got more attention, The Wyoming Wildlife Federation invited Linda to create their first print and stamp in 1983.
When her husband’s job took them to Colorado, Linda continued painting wildlife, expanding her repertoire to include dogs. Dogs moved to the forefront when the national conservation group, Ducks Unlimited, asked her to produce a number of dog images to use for their fund-raising events. Oklahoma Ducks Unlimited honored her with the Artist of the Year award in 1995, and she was recognized as a Colorado Ducks Unlimited honoree in 1999.
Linda also created images for the National Guide Dog Foundation to help fund guide dogs, and she has supported local animal rescue and land conservation groups through the years with her work.
Several years ago, Hamilton Collectibles asked Linda to create the Golden Discovery series of golden retriever puppy images for collector plates. Her dog images have also been published on greeting cards and magazine covers.
Since becoming an Arizona resident, Linda’s career has moved into the southwestern variety of animals. Dogs and cats that are typically found in the southwest, along with burros, coyotes, rabbits, bobcats, and even javelina all qualify. She has become a “Master of Expression.” Her paintings exude a vibrancy and expression rarely found in animal art.
The Guide Dog Foundation for the Blind invited Linda to create an image for their 50th Anniversary celebration, and the original painting hangs in the Foundation’s National Administrative Center in Smithtown, New York.
Linda has been in group and solo exhibitions, including “The Contemporary Canine Works” from the Artists Registry (1996-97) at the American Kennel Club Dog Museum. Her dog portraits have been featured on covers and articles for The American Kennel Gazette, Sirius, Canine Collectibles, Business Views, The Golden Discovery, and Colorado Ducks Unlimited.
Her biography as a Wildlife Artist is listed in Contemporary Western Artists by Samuels and A Breed Apart by William Secord which features dog art from the American Kennel Club Art Museum.
Her career includes many highlights: Former President Ronald Reagan was so taken with his Linda Budge painting that he hung it over the fireplace in the Western White House and it now hangs in the private quarters of the Reagan Library in Simi Valley, California. Another notable accomplishment is that Linda has been juried into the prestigious Cheyenne Frontier Days Western Art Show for 23 consecutive years.
Education
University of Utah
Utah State University
Wyoming University
Professional Organizations
Signature member of the Society of Animal Artists
Signature member of the Artists for Conservation
Juried member of the Sonoran Art League
