Oleg Stravrowsky
1927-2020
KNOWN FOR
Cowboy genre, horse and figure painter
Born to Russian parents and raised in Harlem, New York, Oleg Stavrowsky is a painter of western subjects and now lives in Lago Vista, Texas, near Austin. Of himself, he says: “I turned out to be a real country hick. I have no desire to live in the city any more.”
His interest in western art began in high school during World War II. After serving in the war, he became a technical illustrator for McDonnell Aircraft in St. Louis. Then his career expanded to fashion illustration and other types of commercial art, but he became exasperated with art directors.
A visit to Oklahoma City and the Cowboy Hall of Fame changed his life, and he gave up commercial art and went to Santa Fe, New Mexico where he started western painting.
