I have spent over thirty years working in the fields of American Western Art and History as a museum director, author, lecturer, and auction specialist. Prior to launching Michael Duty Fine Art, I served as the interim managing director of the Department of Fine and Decorative Arts at Heritage Auction Galleries in Dallas and served as that firm’s western art specialist. I have consulted with both private collectors and museums, including the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City, the Autry National Center in Los Angeles, the Eiteljorg Museum of American Indians and Western Art in Indianapolis, and the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of the American Indian.I was fortunate to begin my career in American Western Art at the Amon Carter Museum in Fort Worth, where I served as the museum’s first Director of Public Relations and Development. Later I served as Executive Director of the Rockwell Museum of Western Art in Corning, New York, and founded that museum’s Center for Western Art. In 1987, I became the founding Executive Director of the Eiteljorg Museum of American Indians and Western Art and oversaw the construction of the 75,000 square foot building and the launch of the museum. As Director of the Eiteljorg, I was a co-founder of MuseumsWest, a consortium of the leading museums of Western Art and History in the United States and Canada. I have also served as the Executive Director of the California Historical Society in San Francisco, the official state historical agency of California. In 2001, I returned to my native Texas to become the Executive Director of the National Western Art Foundation in San Antonio, Texas.
One of my favorite activities is giving talks on topics in Western Art and history and I have participated in numerous symposia, including ones at the Claremont Graduate University in Claremont, California, the University of Texas at Arlington, the Royal College of Art in London, England, and the C.M. Russell Center for the Study of Art of the American West at the University of Oklahoma in Norman, Oklahoma. I also write on the topic of Western Art and have been fortunate to win a few awards. In 2004, my book on the Cowboy Artists of America was awarded the top prize in the art category at the Western Heritage Awards presented by the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, and in 2006, my book titled, “Western Traditions: Contemporary Artists of the American West” won the award for best book on the Southwest at the inaugural New Mexico Book Awards. My latest book, “Texas Traditions: Contemporary Artists of the Lone Star State,” was published in August of 2010. The book combines an historic perspective on the development of western art in Texas with a survey of some of the state’s leading contemporary artists. Among my other books are: “Remington’s West,” “Frontier Legacy,” and “Southwest Realism.” Some of these titles are now out of print, but can often be found through a variety of internet sources, such as Amazon.com.
I have organized over 60 museum exhibitions, many of which have traveled nationally. And I am currently working on a retrospective exhibition and book on landscape artist, Wilson Hurley. I have served as Vice President of MuseumsWest, Vice President of the Texas Association of Museums and was an advisor to the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of the American Indian on the development of its archives and storage facility. While I have expertise in both historic and contemporary art, my specialty is the art of the American West.
I have organized over 60 museum exhibitions, many of which have traveled nationally. And I am currently working on a retrospective exhibition and book on landscape artist, Wilson Hurley. I have served as Vice President of MuseumsWest, Vice President of the Texas Association of Museums and was an advisor to the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of the American Indian on the development of its archives and storage facility. While I have expertise in both historic and contemporary art, my specialty is the art of the American West.
