A Captivating Western Scene by Frank C McCarthy, Western Painter and Illustrator

Frank C. McCarthy (1924-2002)

The Hunters

12 x 21 inches

Framed: 30 x 21 1/2 inches

Oil on canvas

Signed lower right with the artist's device and McCarthy and copyrighted

Signed, titled and numbered B-46 verso

$9,000

Like many artists born and raised in New York City, Frank McCarthy attended the Pratt Institute and the Art Students League before he began his career in commercial art. His illustrations were produced in the magazines "Colliers," "Argosy" and "True" and during the 1950's, he produced cover art for western novels.

While he spent much of his career in New York, like his predecessor Frederic Remington, McCarthy became known for illustrating and painting Western scenes, particularly of the Plains Indians in action. A popular motif of McCarthy's had been to portray his characters in action, especially stampeding buffalo. His skillful canvases earned him a strong reputation as a top-selling artist.

In 1973, McCarthy had his first major exhibition of his paintings at the Husburg Gallery in Scottsdale, Arizona. Twenty-three canvases hung in the show and it reportedly sold out in twenty minutes. This success caused the artist to devote himself to fine art, and he moved from New York to Sedona, Arizona.

In 1975 the artist was elected to the Cowboy Artists of America, which he resigned from in 1998. In 1997, he was indicted into the Society of Illustrators ‘Hall of Fame.’ The artist was also a member of the Northwest Rendezvous Group.

McCarthy has been honored with four retrospectives at various museums: the Museum of the Southwest in Midland, Texas; in Shreveport, Louisiana; the Gilcrease Museum in Tulsa, Oklahoma and the Cowboy Artists of America in Kerrville, Texas.

His paintings and legend live on through limited edition prints of his 100 finest paintings.