The love for art developed for Bill Joe Sowell during his adolescence starting with pin striping cars. His love for art and its process has continued to develop into well crafted, emotional and thoughtful out works of art, which we see today. His media are as varied as his subjects are. His paintings show the environment around him, from the majesty of the mountains in his landscapes to the complexities of life reflected in his portrayal of Native Americans. His forged metal wall hangings range from old Apache playing card designs to his interpretation of cultural masks. He has also completed monumental bonze pieces that are on display in public places around the Southwest.
Bill was born in 1940 in Corpus Cristi, Texas, the oldest of three children and the only boy. In the early 50's the family moved to Lubbock, Texas where he lived until 1972. His first experience with commercial painting was a job pin striping cars. Bill had no real interest in continuing his education after high school, but his mother encouraged him to take a correspondence course in art. The correspondence course intrigued him with the process of art – how drawing and painting was actually done. He was fascinated but not yet ready to make a commitment to a career in the field. During this time he was in the Army Reserves and when the Berlin Crisis occurred he was called to active duty. It was after this tour of active duty that he decided to go back to school and when he did it was in the field of art.
Bill went first to a junior college and then on to Texas Tech University where he graduated with honors and a degree in Art and Design. It was at Tech that Bill met his wife, Marvanette, also a talented artist. Here too, his thirst for knowledge about art and especially the art process led him on to graduate work with an emphasis on ceramics and sculpture. Only a few credits shy of his graduate degree, Bill left the academic environment due in a large part to the politics he encountered at all levels of the graduate environment. If you have had the pleasure of meeting Bill you will quickly understand the necessity for Bill to get away from politics. He is a "tell it like it is," no nonsense man with little patience for the behind the scene shenanigans so prevalent in large university environments.
After leaving college, he worked locally in Lubbock, Texas creating small bonzes for a local gallery. Business was good and in 1972, Bill and his young family moved to Oklahoma where Bill almost on a whim purchased a ghost town, Nelagoney, for $1,000. Here they set up and ran a foundry for 18 years and Bill developed tools and processes still used by other foundries throughout the country. At its high point the foundry was casting works for more than 150 artist. However the time required to run a successful business left little or no time for his art and the stress of the business was taking its toll on his creative energy. Bill finally decided to close the foundry so that he could return to his own art.
While still in Oklahoma, Bill did create some of his largest and best known works, such as the Veteran's Memorial for the State of Oklahoma, and a life size bronze "Boy Scout" for the Osage County Historical Museum.
In 1989, the Sowell family moved to Santa Fe and for a brief period even operated their own gallery, which showcased their work. Bill and Marvanette currently live just north of Espanola, New Mexico where they each have their own studio areas.
Bill and Marvanette have two daughters, one of who is also interested in art and who recently completed her bachelor’s degree in Art from the University New Mexico. Bill’s advice to her and others thinking about a career in art is that the business of art is a difficult way to make a living, but if you feel passionately about it, then you should go ahead and do it.
Bill is a strong proponent of the Cristof's philosophy of educating our clients on the appreciation of both the individual finished work of art and the process by which it came to be. The history of a piece, and an understanding of the mechanics and tools of its creation, all add to the value and greater appreciation for the finished product. As Bill so succinctly puts it. "Art is in the process not in the personality". He also says that art should be a visual experience, not the telling of a story. To look at a Bill Sowell painting is indeed a visual experience, but to this writer it is much more, perhaps not a story, but an idea or concept with strong emotions being evoked from within.