Don Brestler - Bio and list of works

Don Brestler was born in the Dirty Thirties in Calgary, Alberta. As a young man, he lived the cowboy life as much as possible. He worked on the Knight Ranch and the McIntyre Ranch, packed and wrangled horses for Andy Russell, broke horses at the Ya Ha Tinda Ranch, and occasionally he rode bronc at local rodeos.

Don showed artistic talent in his early years and he was self-taught. Don's interest in the history of the Old West and North American wildlife became the focus of his self-styled art, expressed through oil paintings and pen and ink sketches. He diligently strove for originality, refusing to copy from photographs or other works of art.

His commercial artworks graced three magazines, five books, numerous newsletters and logos, and over 130 Christmas cards. Don's oil paintings have been displayed at the Calgary Stampede, Pincher Creek Library, Lebel mansion, and Remington Carriage Museum in Cardston, Alberta.

Magazine covers of oil paintings

-Canadian Cattlemen Magazine

-Field, Horse, and Rodeo

-Western Sportsman

Book illustrations

-Morning Side of the Rockies, Rob Osberg, 1997

-The Canadian Cowboy, Andy Russell, 1993

-Andy Russell's Campfire Stories, Andy Russell, 1998

Books

-A Young Adult's Guide to the Canadian West, Bayeux Arts, 2002

-Spirit of the West - The Art of Don Brestler, Bayeux Arts, 2002

-Cowboy Memoirs - Postcards and Sketches, Bayeux Arts, 2005

-Cowboy Embers, Bayeux Arts, 2009

Self-Published Books

-Face into the Wind, Don Brestler, 1999

-Life's Amusing Little Moments, Don Brestler, 2014

Short stories with illustrations

-Shell-Waterton newsletter

-Canadian Cattlemen Magazine

-Western Outdoor Adventure

Letterheads, logos, and organization illustrations

-Calgary City Police PATROL newsletter

-Pincher Creek Co-op Ranchland Roundup newsletter

-Alberta Cowboy Poetry Association

Profiles

-"Cowboys North & South", the official publication of the Will James Society (Volume 15, Number 2, Summer 2008)

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