My West

Gallen, Bill: - Growing up along the shores of Lake Michigan and wandering the woods and fields of his native Wisconsin gave Bill Gallen an early appreciation for the wonders of the natural world. Gallen graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in history and German and spent a year studying in Freiburg, Germany. Plans to pursue an academic teaching career gave way when he moved to Colorado and began a painting contracting business with his brother. Nurturing a lifelong interest in art, Gallen studied painting and drawing in his free time with local instructors as well as at workshops in Taos, New Mexico, and the Scottsdale Artists School. He counts Michael Lynch, David Ballew and Ned Jacob among his most influential teachers.Bill Gallen currently resides in New Mexico where he enjoys painting landscapes, particularly location pieces. The eye for beauty and harmony in nature which he developed as a child in the Midwest informs his work with freshness and sensitivity. Gallen's paintings are included in private, corporate and museum collections nationwide.

Fox, Jenifer: - Jenifer Fox was born and raised in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. She holds degrees from The University of Wisconsin-Madison, The Bread Loaf School of English, and Harvard University. She is also the author of Your Child's Strengths (Viking/Penguin) and The Differentiated Instruction Book of Lists (Jossey-Bass). After a noteworthy career as an educator, Jenifer now resides in Taos, New Mexico, where she works as a full-time writer and watercolor artist. Her poems Fishing the Rio Del Pueblo and La Jicarita won first and second place, respectively, in the 2020 Southwestern Poet's Society annual literary awards competition. In addition, her paintings have been shown in galleries throughout the United States and featured in literary magazines.