What a Week in Cody
I’m home from my first Buffalo Bill Art Show & Sale in Cody, Wyoming, and still taking in what an extraordinary experience it was.
I brought work representing two very different sides of my studio practice—from the slow, layered process of painting on acrylic glass to the immediacy and spontaneity of spray paint.
And I’m incredibly grateful to share that all of my auction works found homes with collectors.
It was an unforgettable few days of art, collectors, fellow artists, new friendships—and some very unpredictable Wyoming weather.
May the Four Winds Blow You Home Again
Multi-layer painted acrylic glass
Friday evening began with the live auction and a painting that represents the other end of my creative process.
May the Four Winds Blow You Home Again was created across five individually painted layers of acrylic glass. Each transparent layer carries a different part of the image, coming together only when the finished work is assembled.
After months in my studio, watching this piece go before collectors at the Buffalo Bill Art Show & Sale—and ultimately find its new home—was incredibly meaningful.
I’m so grateful to the collector who chose to bring it home.
90 Minutes. Wind. Rain. And Spray Paint.
Action Shot - Photo Credit, Laura Nelson
Saturday morning was an entirely different experience.
For the Buffalo Bill Quick Draw, artists were given just 90 minutes to create a finished work before it was framed and taken directly to auction.
I had planned to paint outside.
Wyoming had other plans.
(Photo Credit: Laura Nelson)
The wind picked up. Then came the rain.
Plastic started flying, an umbrella became part of my setup, and at one point I found myself painting under a table beneath plastic just to keep going.
And somehow, I loved every minute of it.
There simply wasn't time to overthink. One decision led immediately to another—color, movement, instinct and response.
(Special Thanks: Andrew Rossi and Cowboy State Daily)
(Photo Credit: Laura Nelson)
(Photo Credit: Laura Nelson)
From Quick Draw to Live Auction
Once the 90 minutes were up, the painting was framed and we headed straight into the auction tent. Each Quick Draw artist carried their finished work down the runway while it was auctioned live—a little nerve-racking after an already exhilarating 90 minutes!
I walked the runway with Run for the Roses as the bidding began, and I was thrilled to watch it find its new home that afternoon.
(Photo Credit: Laura Nelson)
Run for the Roses
24 × 24 inches
Spray paint on linen
SOLD
All Good Things in All Good Time
24 × 24 inches
Spray paint on linen
SOLD
Created before I left for Cody, All Good Things in All Good Time was included in the Buffalo Bill Art Show & Sale silent auction. I’m so happy to share that it found a new home.
All Good Things in All Good Time on view at the 2026 Buffalo Bill Art Show & Sale.
Some of you may remember seeing this painting come together before I left for Cody. Here’s a look back at the process.
A WEEK I WON’T FORGET
What a week in Cody.
I’m incredibly grateful to have been part of the 45th Buffalo Bill Art Show & Sale and to see my work so warmly received. From the live and silent auctions to painting Run for the Roses during the Quick Draw—and then watching the pieces find new homes—it was an experience I won’t soon forget.
Thank you to the Buffalo Bill Art Show & Sale, the Buffalo Bill Center of the West, the patrons and collectors who support this event, and everyone who followed along from home. And a very special thank you to the collectors who chose to bring my work into their homes.
I came home from Cody inspired, grateful, and already thinking about what I might create next.
Not Fade Away - NFA, 7” x 7” - Collected as a full-donation silent auction item to the Buffalo Bill Art Show & Sale
Thank you for following the journey.
Janell