Rowland Cheney has spent the the majority of his adult life teaching Art at the college leveland producing work that celebrates the beauty, romance and mysteryof life.
Born in 1943 in Utah, educated in California at Chico State and U.C. Berkeley, he works in a broad range of media, including bronze, oil, watercolor, and prints. He has been referred to as a "complete" artist, indicating an uncanny ability to work with authority in virtually any media.
Commissions represent the bulk of his work, includiong a number of bronze bas-relief commemorative sculptures. He has been commissioned by universities, businesses, communities, and individuals. Some time ago he completed a five-year commitment to produce a series of five collectable sculptures for the Breyer Corporation. This collection of model horsesentitled "The Messenger Series," focuses on promoting and preserving a small, isolated herd of wild Spanish colonial horses called "Kiger Mustangs." This series has contributed greastly to a heightened public interest in these rare and wonderfulcreatures. Rowland's Messenger Series has been reissued by Breyer in 2002 under the title "Wild Hearts Running Free." The horses have been rcolored to more closely represent those found among the remainingwild horses scattered throughout the West. The Breyer release coincides with the release of Spielberg's animated movie Spirit, Stallion of the Cimarrone. The lead stallion, "Spirit," is patterned after a Kiger Mustang. His "Dun" color is the dominant color in the Kiger herd, which, along with his long, flowing mane, forelock, and tail, make "Spirit" immediately recognizable as a Kiger.
Rowland has been closely connected to wildlife and ecological concerns. All of Rowland's work reflects his interest in wildlife, horses, and a Western lifestyle. He lives in Clements, California, where he helped raise his familiy of four along with a herd of Kiger mustangs which includes three breathtaking stallions, 6 truly beautiful mares and, this year, 5 new foals.
Rowland's art is intensely spiritual. Art, he says, is a blessing, a gift from God that allows him to bring his family and his diverse range of interests and passions together.
