Distinctly Montana Magazine

D I S T I N C T L Y M O N T A N A M A G A Z I N E • S U M M E R 2 0 2 1 40 Carol Hartman's HOW HAS YOUR BACKGROUND INFLUENCED YOUR ART? Coming from a very rural upbringing in northeastern Montana, I always see the wide view of a landscape. Even as a 2-year-old child, I would memorize everything about various locations on our ranch and the old homesteads long ago forgotten. Throughout my school years, I was always the one painting windows and making school posters. When entering MSU Bozeman, without any formal art training, I was enrolled in the Experimental Section to either "sink or swim" with nationally recruited artists. I loved it and I never looked back. My Masters degree in Fine Arts is from California State University Fresno. I've been fortunate to work in the arts my entire life, exhibiting across the USA and Europe, eventually teaching art, and directing the campus art galleries at CSU Sacramento and CSU Fresno. After 25 years of creating Interactive Electronic Installations dealing with biases and prejudices, I now work entirely in oil paintings. With a continued emphasis on revealing personal choices, I returned to Montana in 2009 to delve into choices made by early pioneers of the West and their effect upon the land through time. PLEASE TELL US ABOUT HOW MONTANA HAS INFLUENCED AND INSPIRED YOUR WORK. My love of Montana's rugged history and my appreciation of those who came before me influence my work more than anything else. Montana's rich heritage is near and dear to my heart. My desire to learn about that history through the early inhabitants of the land leads to the opportunity to help tell the story of the growth of our society in the West. Reflecting upon the difficulties early peoples faced as they developed a civilization helps tell the story of 19th and 20th century America. Pride in our forefathers help shape who we are today. The story of those who tended the land before the 19th century also needs to be recognized. My goal is to find the signifi- cant elements of both those stories and their effects upon the land. The extensive series I create tell the "story" about the West from the perspective of the "land," reflecting the positive and the negative effects mankind has had upon that land. I'm fortunate to have a family homestead history deeply involved in those early Montana days. End of Season Glory Land Driftwood

• Cover