Kathy Winkler paints many different types of contemporary animals in an impressionistic and neo-pictographic style. She has a special ability to capture details and personality and her charismatic portraits of Texas Longhorn cattle and North American bison are becoming well recognized across the country.

"What inspires me to paint the way I paint is the satisfaction I feel when I can portray an animal in such a way that captures its character. If I am patient, each animal entrusts me with his unique spirit and personality, and allows me to bring that out on my canvas to share with the viewer. As an artist, the most wonderful feeling occurs with having made the emotional investment in a painting and noticing the sound the painting leaves in the air. If other people can feel it, then I have achieved the ultimate gratification with my work."

                                Capturing the Spirit!  
                                 "The Texas Longhorn paintings are simply amazing...the look in the eyes of that big steer was so special...
                                                                the Longhorn was speaking to me from the canvas."

Winkler standardly paints with acrylics, but often includes mixed media in some of her works.  

Kathy has always been an artist, but left the field for a number of years and worked in corporate America. After earning a B.A. degree in Business Management and an M.A. in International Studies, Kathy enjoyed a career in engineering management supporting U.S. Navy combat systems before returning to her life-long passion--painting.  In the late 1990s, she was motivated to paint an armoire for one of her children. The motif chosen was pictographic. That idea stayed with her, and when she left the corporate world, Kathy began to experiment with the neo-pictographic form. Each of her paintings is a new expression of that art form.

Kathy Winkler is a native Texan, but currently resides in Virginia with her husband, Jerry, three rescued dogs and a rescued cat. They also raise, breed and show American Warmblood horses. Kathy and Jerry have two grown daughters and three young grandchildren who also live nearby in Virginia.