The Cow Whisperer

FORT WORTH, TEXAS - 2024

STANDARD
39” x 37” Unframed 54” x 52” Framed Edition of 12
LARGE
58” x 56” Unframed 73” x 71” Framed Edition of 12

Fort Worth is the most famous cowtown in the world and the historic Stockyards are an integral part of the rich legacy of the old west. The town is once again booming because the Stockyards, and the sense of Old Americana that they offer, has become a hot tourist attraction. This year the redeveloped Stockyards area will welcome an astonishing eight million visitors - 80x the population of Fort Worth when the cattle trains were in their prime. It’s the most circular of reinventions and it now looks like Fort Worth’s very best days lie ahead.

At first light the Stockyards still offer some potential to tell timeless stories. The rising sun from the east casts some shafts of light along the cobbled streets and the corridors of wooden cattle pen. There is only a small window of opportunity before the sun becomes a little too powerful.

I never want to be too earnest in our storytelling, I prefer to have some creative courage and entertain. In our Wild West series, we recognise that we are in the confines of an old genre and we want to break new ground. It’s good to be playful from time to time.

In this exchange, the cowboy’s line of sight is to be expected, but the lead steer seems to be much more focused than normally observed. She has his full attention.

~ David Yarrow