A.R. Mitchell Museum of Western Art

A.R. Mitchell Museum of Western Art Celebrating the cowboy and the old west through the art of A.R. Mitchell "King of the Cowboy Pulp Illustrators".

Arthur Roy Mitchell (1889-1977) painted iconic western scenes featuring cowboys, horses, cattle and vast beautiful landscapes that captured the hearts and minds of pulp western readers from the 1930's to today. Known as the "King of the Pulp Western Illustrators", the largest collection of his work is proudly displayed at the A.R. Mitchell Museum of Western Art, in downtown Trinidad, Colorado. The

establishment of the museum came about following the artist’s death in 1977 when Ethel Mitchell Erickson or “Tot” A.R. Mitchell's sister, felt a sentimental pull toward returning his entire collection to Trinidad where she and her brother were born and raised. More than 350 paintings and illustrations by Mitchell are displayed at the museum, along with works by other nationally recognized artists like Harold Von Schmidt and Harvey Dunn. The museum also exhibits a collection of early Hispanic folk art including bultos, retablos, tinwork, Penitente artifacts, Native American pottery and blankets. The museum exhibits a historic collection of photographs taken by George Benjamin Wittick. Born in 1845, Wittick was the official photographer of the Atlantic & Pacific Railroad (later known as Atchison Topeka & Santa Fe). The display of his photographs of Native American culture is not to be missed. A.R.Mitchell Memorial Museum of Western Art is located in the historic Jamieson Department Store, a 1906 Western-style structure with original pressed-tin ceilings, wood floors and a horseshoe-shaped mezzanine.

In theme with the Character in Context illustration and process show hanging in the museum right now, here’s a look at t...
05/13/2026

In theme with the Character in Context illustration and process show hanging in the museum right now, here’s a look at the process behind Mitchell’s own illustration work.

This piece, titled “A Very Bad Day,” is based on one of Mitch’s stories about his days spent on roundups. This particular season was full of gopher holes littering the ground, which lead to the fall of Mitchell and his horse.

Like many illustrators, Mitchell did a lot of process work before attacking a canvas with paint. Some of his paintings in the museum collection have over 20 sketches in preparation for the final piece. This perfection of composition through his preliminary work is one of the many reasons for Mitchell’s title, “The King of Western Pulp Illustrators.” This particular piece features a personal story, preliminary work, and the final magazine cover from Cowboy Stories.

Can you spot the differences between the finished painting from the museum collection and the piece printed for the magazine?

You can see these Mitchell works on display during June’s First Friday opening, alongside over 50 working illustrators in our 3rd annual Character in Context show.

Come join us for the third annual Character in Context exhibition at the historic A.R. Mitchell Museum in Trinidad, Colo...
04/23/2026

Come join us for the third annual Character in Context exhibition at the historic A.R. Mitchell Museum in Trinidad, Colorado.
Soft opening May 1, 5-8
Grand opening June 5, 5-8, live painting and other programming TBA.

In its third year, Character in Context showcases hand-crafted artwork by distinguished working artists. Featuring traditionally-made preliminary work alongside final artwork, this innovative presentation in a museum setting seeks to inspire viewers by placing them behind the scenes into an artist’s process. In the age of digitally altered media and soulless, AI-generated images, this exhibition is the exception by showcasing the work behind the artwork, in all of its raw beauty.

For inquiries on artwork, please contact [email protected]. All artwork copyright the respective artists.
by

See this full work by Steve Belledin for yourself during our soft opening on May 1st. Also join us for the grand opening...
04/15/2026

See this full work by Steve Belledin for yourself during our soft opening on May 1st. Also join us for the grand opening and artist reception on June 5th. Artworks will be available for purchase in-person and online through July 31st. Click the link in our bio for more info!

Artworks:
Lifeline
Steve Belledin
Oil
12 x 24 inches

Lifeline Study
Oil
5 x 10 inches

Lifeline Preliminary Sketch
Pencil
5 x 10 inches

It’s time to update your calendar, Character In Context is on the horizon. Join us at the museum for a preview during Ma...
04/13/2026

It’s time to update your calendar, Character In Context is on the horizon. Join us at the museum for a preview during May’s First Friday on the 1st. The grand opening will take place at June’s First Friday on the 5th. Artists will be in attendance as well as doing live painting demos. We’re so excited to bring this illustration show to you again!

Artwork;
“Self-Containment” Preliminary Sketch
Red Nose Studio
Pencil on paper
4x7 inches

This is a staff photo of A.R. Mitchell from the 1956-57 school year during his time at Trinidad State Junior College - n...
04/10/2026

This is a staff photo of A.R. Mitchell from the 1956-57 school year during his time at Trinidad State Junior College - now Trinidad State College. Mitchell developed the art program at in 1945 and continued to teach for 14 years. Many of his students, such as .paulmilosevich went on to become professional artists themselves.

The note on the back of this photograph reads “Teacher (art) at Trinidad State Junior College, 1956, everybody got mugged every year.” Seems like Mitch loved picture day.

We’re excited to host Unbridled, a show celebrating the women who refuse to be fenced in by genre, geography, or expecta...
03/19/2026

We’re excited to host Unbridled, a show celebrating the women who refuse to be fenced in by genre, geography, or expectation. This exhibition welcomes the full spectrum of Western visual culture: from ranch and rodeo to borderlands and back alleys, from high plains light to urban grit, from historical re-visioning to speculative futures. Artists are encouraged to take risks, push scale and material, and submit work that feels most true to their own wild, Western imagination.

Have you got your entry submitted for our Unbridled show later this year? There is still time to turn in artwork, juried by the lovely Find the link in our biography!

Tomorrow night is a stellar trio of openings! First Friday is going big with shows inside inside the museum and a massi...
03/06/2026

Tomorrow night is a stellar trio of openings! First Friday is going big with shows inside inside the museum and a massive show on our second floor! Join us tomorrow night for First Friday and party with us from 5-8!

Tonight at !Trinidad State College Art Department is proud to present Frank LaLumia, via Paula Little, as our visiting a...
03/05/2026

Tonight at !
Trinidad State College Art Department is proud to present Frank LaLumia, via Paula Little, as our visiting artist lecturer on Thursday, March 5th, 2026 from 5:30 - 6:30pm. This lecture will highlight how light affects outdoor watercolor painting, morning, noon, and night. Frank traveled the world, chasing down the light for 50 great years. The talk will include photos of paintings from China, Mexico, Guatemala, India, Morocco, the U.S., Turkey, the Caribbean, and more. This presentation will be a small selection of the 1,000 pieces that will hang in The A.R. Mitchell Museum during the month of March.

This lecture will be housed in the TCRM Room, in the Boyd Building, located at 500 Park St, Trinidad, CO 81082. As you come into the Boyd building from Park Street, the TCRM room is the first room on the left.

This Friday night we will be highlighting the life’s work of Frank LaLumia with hundreds of pieces from 50 years of trav...
03/05/2026

This Friday night we will be highlighting the life’s work of Frank LaLumia with hundreds of pieces from 50 years of travel and plein air painting! Join us from 5-8 inside the museum!

A fun find in one of our boxes of Mitchell’s sketches. This is a great example of his work as a cartoonist for the local...
02/11/2026

A fun find in one of our boxes of Mitchell’s sketches. This is a great example of his work as a cartoonist for the local Trinidad Chronicle News during his teenage years. An article published by the Chronicle wrote that Mitchell “sees the funny side of everything and is able to put it on paper.” He later went on to become the circulation and advertisement manager at the newspaper.

Address

150 E Main Street
Trinidad, CO
81082

Opening Hours

Tuesday 10am - 4pm
Wednesday 10am - 4pm
Thursday 10am - 4pm
Friday 10am - 4pm
Saturday 10am - 4pm

Telephone

+17198464224

Website

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when A.R. Mitchell Museum of Western Art posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.

Contact The Museum

Send a message to A.R. Mitchell Museum of Western Art:

Shortcuts

Share

Category