ARTIST STATEMENT:
My work explores the West as it is and the West as I imagine it.
I grew up in Wyoming and now live in Colorado, and the landscapes, wildlife and waters of the American West have always shaped the way I see the world. I'm interested in the West as a living, contemporary place—not simply the mythology of what it used to be. To me, it is young, vibrant, colorful and constantly changing.
I draw from my own experiences outdoors: the animals I've encountered, the rivers I've fished and the landscapes I've spent time in. Trout, flies and fly-fishing appear frequently in my work because I'm an avid angler, while Western wildlife—from pronghorn antelope and bison to elk, bighorn sheep and the occasional jackalope—provides an endless source of inspiration.
Sometimes I draw what I see. Sometimes I draw what I wish I could see.
That freedom has led me to blur the line between observation and imagination, combining familiar Western subjects in unexpected ways. A bison might wear the colors of a rainbow trout, bighorn sheep might carry the brilliant pattern of a brookie, and creatures of folklore can exist comfortably alongside real wildlife. Even in my more traditional work, I'm less interested in strict realism than in capturing the energy, personality and sense of place I find outdoors.
My materials reflect that same sense of experimentation. Although I continue to paint in oils, much of my work consists of mixed media drawings and collages created on Mylar, a semi-translucent surface that allows me to build imagery through layers. Ink, watercolor, paper, pencil, china marker, acrylic and pastel overlap and interact, creating a style that has become a signature of my work.
I am drawn to bright color, bold lines and hidden complexity—details that reveal themselves slowly the longer you look.
Ultimately, my work is rooted in paying attention: getting outside, observing your surroundings and allowing your own experiences to shape how you see a place. I don't want to recreate someone else's idea of the American West.
I want to show you mine.
Biography:
Molly’s Studio
Molly Box (McCarty) grew up in Wyoming, where wildlife, open spaces and time spent outdoors provided some of her earliest artistic subjects. She began drawing the animals she encountered around her at a young age, establishing a connection between art and the natural world that continues to shape her work today.
Molly studied art at the University of Wyoming, where she also minored in Drawing. During college, she studied abroad in Tours, France, taking art courses and developing an appreciation for Post-Impressionism and its expressive use of color, observation and interpretation. Her studies of the human figure introduced greater movement and gesture into her work, while experimentation with painting and ink gradually moved her beyond the grayscale drawings of her earlier years toward the vibrant color that now defines much of her work.
It was also during college that Molly was first introduced to drawing on Mylar. She continued experimenting with the translucent surface after graduation, layering ink, watercolor, pencil, china marker, pastel, acrylic, paper and other materials to develop the distinctive mixed media approach that has become a signature of her work.
After graduating in 2008, Molly returned to Wyoming and began establishing herself as a regional artist. A lifelong angler, she naturally brought her love of fly-fishing into her studio, and trout, flies and anglers became recurring subjects alongside the Western wildlife she had drawn since childhood. Wildlife photography also became part of her creative process, providing reference material gathered from her own experiences outdoors.
Today, Molly lives and works in Wellington, Colorado, drawing continued inspiration from the Rocky Mountains and the wildlife, rivers and remaining open spaces of the West. Her work has been exhibited and sold through nationally juried exhibitions, galleries, art festivals and other venues throughout the region.
At the center of her work is a fascination with the West as it exists today—not as a nostalgic version of what it once was. It is still a place where wild animals cross roads, trout move through mountain streams and large stretches of open country remain just beyond the doorstep.
Molly's work celebrates that living West while increasingly making room for the one she imagines, too: colorful, contemporary, occasionally unexpected and always a little wild.
Selected Exhibitions, Awards & Publications:
Festival of the Arts, Saratoga, WY
2026
Cheyenne Creativity Center's Second Annual Invitational Exhibition — Cheyenne, WY | February 1–March 1.
City Hall Art Exhibition — Selected by the City of Fort Collins Visual Arts Department to exhibit artwork at City Hall, Fort Collins, CO | February 13–June 12.
Western Spirit Art Show — Cheyenne Frontier Days Old West Museum, Cheyenne, WY | March–April.
Off the Hook Arts Benefit Auction — Invited to create a custom-painted guitar for a fundraising auction, Fort Collins, CO | June.
Sound of Wellington Public Art Project — Selected to paint a public piano for the Town of Wellington, CO | July.
Festival of the Arts — Saratoga, WY | July.
Nicolaysen Art Museum Annual Gala — Five artworks selected for the fundraising auction, Casper, WY | September.
Deck of Art — Invited to contribute original artwork to a Fort Collins artist-designed playing card collection, with accompanying exhibitions at Cornerstone Gallery and the Center for Creativity, Fort Collins, CO | September–December.
All In — Two artworks selected for exhibition at Cornerstone Gallery, Fort Collins, CO | September 28–December 19.
2025
Rocky Mountain Anthology — Invited to contribute 13 original drawings to the forthcoming publication by Mountaineers Books, scheduled for release in 2027.
Fort Collins Studio Tour & Preview Exhibition — Center for Creativity, Fort Collins, CO | October 25–26.
Nicolaysen Art Museum Annual Gala — Five artworks selected for auction; all five sold, Casper, WY | September.
Chautauqua Public Art Project — Selected to paint a birdhouse for Chautauqua Park, Boulder, CO.
Juried Fine Art Show — Main Street Gallery, Brighton, CO | October 10–29.
Our Kindred Fauna — Juried exhibition, Valkarie Gallery, Denver, CO | October 1–November 2.
Festival of the Arts — Saratoga, WY.
Western Spirit Art Show — Cheyenne Frontier Days Old West Museum, Cheyenne, WY | March–April.
2024
Cheyenne Creativity Center's First Annual Local Artists Invitational — Cheyenne, WY.
Festival of the Arts — Saratoga, WY | July 5–7.
Western Spirit Art Show — Cheyenne Frontier Days Old West Museum, Cheyenne, WY | March–April.
South Fort Collins Magazine — Artist feature | August.
Discover Fort Collins Magazine — Snowy Snuggles selected as cover artwork for the December–January issue.
2023
Loveland Library Galleria Exhibitions — Selected for first- and second-quarter exhibitions, Loveland, CO | January 3–June 30.
Solo Exhibition — Paramount Gallery, Cheyenne, WY | February.
Spark of Inspiration — Cheyenne Creativity Center, Cheyenne, WY | February 3–March 6.
Western Spirit Art Show — Cheyenne Frontier Days Old West Museum, Cheyenne, WY | March–April.
Wildlife Art Special Event — Life in the West Art Gallery, Broomfield, CO | April 20–23.
WyCo Art Show — Cheyenne Art Haus, Cheyenne, WY, and Greeley, CO | May.
Mystery Bag Art Challenge — Arts Cheyenne, Cheyenne, WY | Third Place Award, May.
Colorado Open Call Show — R Gallery, Boulder, CO | April 26–June 4.
Festival of the Arts — Saratoga, WY | Second Place, Mixed Media.
Nicolaysen Art Museum Annual Gala — Artwork selected and sold at auction, Casper, WY | September.
2022
Interpretations of Winter — Cheyenne ArtHaus, Cheyenne, WY | December.
Chautauqua WinterFest: Art in the Park — Selected to paint a fiberglass bear sculpture for public exhibition, Boulder, CO | December–April.
Fort Collins Studio Tour & Preview Exhibition — The Lincoln Center, Fort Collins, CO | October 22–23.
Alternative West — Cheyenne ArtHaus, Cheyenne, WY | July.
Festival of the Arts — Four artworks selected for exhibition, Saratoga, WY | July 1–4.
Boulder Art Association National Juried Art Exhibition — Boulder, CO | April 27–May 9.
Balance — Loveland Library Galleria, Loveland, CO | May–June.
Wyoming Wildlife Magazine — Featured in the article A Pillar of Conservation | January.
2021
Regional Fine Art Show — Lincoln Gallery, Loveland, CO | September 10–30.
National Fine Art Juried Show — Louisville Art Association, Louisville, CO | September 1–12.
Festival of the Arts — Four artworks exhibited, Saratoga, WY.
Spring: New Beginning — Juried exhibition, R Gallery, Boulder, CO | March 3–April 11.
55th Annual Own an Original: Liberating Humor — Juried exhibition, Littleton Museum, Littleton, CO | November 2020–January 2021.
2020
Restore the Howl Public Art Project — Commissioned by the Rocky Mountain Wolf Project to create a gray wolf-themed artwork for public exhibition at Soul Squared Brewing Company, Colorado | October.
2019 & Earlier
Solo Exhibition — Nicolaysen Art Museum, Casper, WY | September–October 2019.
Smithsonian Magazine — Featured in Women Have Been Voting in Wyoming for 150 Years, and Here Is How the State Is Celebrating | June 2019.
Festival of the Arts — First Place, Mixed Media, for European Mount, Saratoga, WY | 2018.
Western Spirit Art Show — Contemporary Permanent Collection Purchase Award for Quick Bite, Cheyenne Frontier Days Old West Museum, Cheyenne, WY | 2018.
Western Spirit Art Show — Selected for the nationally juried exhibition in 2011–2016, 2018, 2020, and 2021 (selected years: 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2018, 2020, 2021).
Leadership Cheyenne Public Art Project — Selected to create artwork for a downtown traffic control box, Cheyenne, WY | 2013.
SAGE National Juried Show — Sheridan, WY | 2014.
Call of the Wild — Ciao Gallery, Jackson, WY | 2011.
Animal Art Show — Irvine Art Association, Irvine, TX | 2010.
33rd Annual Juried University of Wyoming Student Exhibition — Juror's Award and University of Wyoming College of Health Sciences Purchase Award | 2008.
Mixed Media Drawing, 18” x 24”