Myron Sahlberg
Alexandria, MN
Visual
Workshops for Adults, Demonstrate, Teach
Myron Sahlberg’s second grade teacher, Miss Nelson, in Stephen, Minnesota, was the first to tell him he’d be an accomplished artist one day. His mother was the second. With that encouragement and the deep longings of his heart, Sahlberg pursued art as a continuous path from which he would never step off. After four years in the Navy during the Vietnam era, Sahlberg’s career in art took off: first as a sought after illustrator who did work for major magazines and college sports teams; then as an instructor in the Communication Art and Design program at a two-year college in Alexandria, Minnesota; and finally as an oil portrait artist – all overlapping careers of the past 30 years. He has a BFA in illustration from Kansas University, an MA in teaching from the University of Saint Thomas, and further training at the Minnesota River School of Fine Art and with individual artists – John Howard Sanden, Bonita Roberts, Richard Whitney, and Carolyn Anderson.
Along the way, Sahlberg’s work in the art field received national and local recognition and awards – such as the Silver Medal from the American Advertising Federation of Central Minnesota. Most recently (2021) he was awarded a lifetime honorary artist membership in the Tucson, AZ, Mountain Oyster Club and a painting in their beautiful permanent collection. His start in western art came with an invite from Stuart Johnson, the owner of Settler’s West Gallery in Tucson, to exhibit at the American Miniature Show in 2016 and at every subsequent annual show. Sahlberg has also exhibited at the Mountain Oyster Club Contemporary Western Art Show in Tucson for the past four years, the Small Works, Great Wonders Show at the National Cowboy Museum in Oklahoma City for the past two years, and the Miniature Masterpiece Show at the Phippen Museum in Prescott, Arizona, for the past two years. His western art, commissioned portraits, and other paintings are in the permanent collection of many private collectors and two museums.
When asked once about his devotion to creative and inspirational painting, Sahlberg answered with, “Painting is one of my joys in life. Each day I get to paint is a great day! I am motivated to keep painting because I have the impression that I am making progress, and I am very thankful God made me an artist.” His spiritual moorings are never far from his work; he relishes the beauty of God’s creation and tries to capture God’s interest and value in the models he chooses to paint. Sahlberg is willing to take risks with techniques and materials but is always focused on painting quality, beauty, morality, and encouraging message he wants to portray in each painting he creates.
