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 | Phyllis DriscollWith no formal art training, Phyllis Driscoll's fascination with clay started as a young girl, digging it from a neighborhood creek. Since then, the desire to give life to her ideas and to watch her characters emerge and grow has sustained her through a variety of jobs and the raising of her children. It has turned into a full-time career and a lifetime dream. "If my work offers you a break from reality and puts a smile on your face, then I've accomplished my goal, because that's what working in this wonderful medium has done for me my whole life!" |
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 | Jeff FlemingBorn in Montana, Jeff grew up surrounded by wilderness and wildlife. An avid outdoorsman, Jeff and his family enjoy all the adventure Montana has to offer. “Montana is an outdoor paradise and I love the wilderness and all things wild.”Jeff’s art career began in 1985. “I always enjoyed working with wood and began by sculpting large wood carvings. Whimsical bears have always been my favorite subject and I’ve carved hundreds of bears from little cubs on up to huge bears standing 20’ tall.” Jeff’s original and commissioned woodcarvings have been shipped around the world and can be found in many private and corporate collections, most National Parks and Disney World. In 1993, Jeff partnered with us to reproduce his whimsical bear designs, starting with Big Sky Bears, a collection of wood carved bears sold throughout the US and Canada. He then went on to create Bearfoots, a collection of whimsical black bears that have been sold and collected worldwide. The loveable Bearfoots popularity soon soared, and have been produced in many forms such as cast resin figurines, dishes and cookie jars, plush, benches, coffee tables, flower planters, clothing, blankets, pillows, Christmas ornaments, chocolates, note cards and many other products. Jeff and his family live in Northwest Montana near Glacier National Park and work together at Jeff’s Bear Country Studio and Gallery in Kalispell, Montana. “I’ve always thought of bears as being very human-like and playful. Many of my bear designs are based on our outdoor adventures or tell stories that many of us have in common, special moments and fun times shared with family and friends in the Great Outdoors.” |
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 | Loyd & Laura MeissenburgLocated along the Flathead River in Northwest Montana, Loyd and Laura Meissenburg of Meissenburg Designs, create and manufacture their own line of vintage signs. A one-time surfer and cartoonist from California, Loyd was inspired by his own collection of vintage ephemera and soon started crafting his own period-style signs for nearly every category…from automotive to lodge to beach. He eventually made his “best business decision ever” by marrying his business partner of over 30 years, Laura. She remains an important source of inspiration, creativity and support in this Made in the USA manufacturer. |
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 | Ken WhiteBorn in a small midwestern farming community, Master Carver Ken White showed an interest in the arts at a very early age.“I’ve spent my life learning lost and forgotten arts like knapping flint for arrowheads, scrimshaw, dog sledding and falconry." He has lived among the Inuit people of Labrador, a far northern providence in Canada. He also lived in the Florida everglades before finally settling in the mountains of Montana. His close relationship with nature is reflected in his masterful woodcarvings. Among other awards for his work, Ken was selected in 2002 to carve a Gyr Falcon for the White House. |
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 | Diane WhiteheadDiane Whitehead was born and raised in Spokane, Washington, and has loved animals since she was young. She received her degree in Business and after many years in the workforce, she followed her heart and began painting the things she loves most.Diane currently resides in Park City, Utah. She loves to travel, spend time at her cabin in Montana, and visit State Parks to photograph the wildlife she artfully brings to life through her strong brushstrokes and bold use of color. |
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 | Denver BryanDenver Bryan is an internationally published photographer whose work has won numerous national awards as well as appeared on the cover of over 500 magazines, including NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC. Denver’s images have been published in many books and graced the pages of such magazines as SMITHSONIAN, FIELD & STREAM, TIME, NEWSWEEK, and many others.Originally a wildlife biologist, Denver has photographed the wildlife ofNorth America extensively and captured images of Africa’s most “dangerous game.” |
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 | John ErikssonJohn Eriksson is a nationally-recognized & award winning photographer who grew up in western Minnesota. His images have appeared on the cover of numerous magazine including OUTDOOR LIFE, SPORTS AFIELD, DEER & DEER HUNTING, and BOWHUNTER magazine. John worked for the University of Wisconsin for many years as captain of a research boat on Lake Michigan. He turned to photography for recreation and employment in the 90’s. John now spends nine months of the year traveling across North America photographing wildlife and enjoying the great outdoors. |
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 | BrushwerksVanessa Lambert and Caroline Lambert-Mimnaugh are sisters born into a long line of painters, photographers and musicians.In 1996, Caroline and Vanessa partnered to form Brushwerks Art Studio: hand producing wild life inspired tableware. In 2002 they were invited to join the Big Sky Carvers team designing wildlife and western theme home accents and dinnerware. Vanessa has spent her entire life as an artist, working in a variety of media including watercolor, pen/ink, brush/ink, graphite, print making and most recently metal and jewelry design. When not in her studio, Vanessa travels to gather inspiration for her next project. Caroline works in graphite and watercolor mediums while designing home accents and dinnerware. She is also the creative inspiration behind ibreakstrings jewleryTM - jewelry made from the recycled guitar strings of Canadian singer songwriter “Wil” (ibreakstrings.com) When not in her studio, Caroline is on the road as tour manager for the band. |