WADING THRU CRIMSON-GRIZZLY BEAR

MEET THE ARTIST

Tony Hilscher

After receiving a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from the University of Wisconsin, Tony started a very successful twenty year career as an illustrator, working for fortune 500 companies such as General Mills, Nabisco, and 3M. Recently he has become devoted to painting wildlife; reconnecting with his real passion. Tony has always had a deep interest in nature and art. Growing up in rural Wisconsin he spent endless hours outdoors, fishing, bowhunting, and canoeing. As an avid outdoorsman, his fall treks to the wild places of the Rockies yield reference photos, plein air landscape studies, and first hand observations and adventures that translate into studio paintings. In only a few short years of painting with oils, Tony has landed a painting in the Top 100, in 2005, and the Top 200, in 2003 ""Arts for the Parks"" competition. He placed in the top 10 for the Minnesota duck stamp competition, and had two paintings selected for the ""Family Means"" project by the St. Croix Valley Art Reach Alliance. He shares a home with his wife and daughter in Stillwater Minnesota where his studio looks out over oak woods and savanna.