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Tooled leather saddles by Cary Schwarz, Carol Gessell, and John Willemsma, on view in the “Cowboy Craft: Traditional Art of the West” exhibition, at the Craft in America Center, Los Angeles. Madison Metro/Courtesy of Craft in America
The American West comes to the West Coast. The Craft in America Center in Los Angeles hosts the “Cowboy Craft: Traditional Art of the West” exhibition of more than 30 works by members of the Traditional Cowboy Arts Association (TCAA). They used time-honored Western techniques to craft saddles, bits and spurs, silverware, and rawhide braids—in steel, gold, silver, leather, and rawhide.
The exhibition is part of Craft in America’s “Handwork: Celebrating American Craft 2026,” a nationwide series of events commemorating the country’s semiquincentennial.
Preserving the Western Crafts
In 1998, a group of cowboy master craftsmen and enthusiasts founded the TCAA to uphold and protect the American Western traditions of silversmithing, saddlemaking, rawhide braiding, and bit and spur-making.
Anyone can apply to join the TCAA, including international masters of the cowboy crafts, but they must be proficient in making American Western-style works and willing to pass on their expertise.
A big part of the TCAA mission is to showcase the brilliance of Western craftsmanship and to have bona fide experts teach the trades. Currently, the TCAA includes four saddlemakers, three silversmiths, four rawhide braiders, and two bit and spur-makers. All are established in their craft, with commissions booked years in advance.
Tooled leather saddles by Cary Schwarz, Carol Gessell, and John Willemsma, on view in the “Cowboy Craft: Traditional Art of the West” exhibition, at the Craft in America Center, Los Angeles. Madison Metro/Courtesy of Craft in America
‘Cowboy Craft: Traditional Art of the West’
The cowboy crafts in the exhibition use centuries-old art techniques. Saddlemaker Cary Schwarz’s hand-tooled floral leather tote, for instance, reflects design concepts and elements from baroque and Victorian-era architectural ornamentation.
Floral carved leather tote, 2009, by Cary Schwarz. Leather, (silver and gold by Scott Hardy); 14 inches by 10 inches by 5 inches. Madison Metro/Courtesy of Craft in America
Many TCAA members also collaborate on works. For more than 25 years, Schwarz has worked with silversmith Scott Hardy, who engraved silver corners on the aforementioned tote.
As part of the exhibition, Hardy will join six other exhibitors in two one-hour online talks about the history and techniques of their crafts. Each talk concludes with a question-and-answer session.
Cowboy Art Talk #1, at 11 a.m. on July 23, features bit and spur-makers Wilson Capron and Ernie Marsh and saddlemakers Carol Gessell and John Willemsma. Cowboy Art Talk #2, at 11 a.m. on Aug. 13, features rawhide braider Leland Hensley and silversmiths Scott Hardy and Beau Compton.
The level of fine craftsmanship presented in the “Cowboy Craft: Traditional Art of the West” exhibition makes these more than 30 functional items museum-level works of fine art. Each of these heritage pieces preserves the Western arts for generations to come. Ultimately, upholding these traditions preserves the cowboy way of life.
“7 Bit #311,” 2019, by Ernie Marsh. Steel, silver, and gold; 10 inches by 6 inches by 6 inches. Madison Metro/Courtesy of Craft in America
“Heart of Gold Spurs,” 2018, by Wilson Capron. Steel and 24-karat gold; 9 inches by 6 inches by 5 inches. Madison Metro/Courtesy of Craft in America
Cowboy stein, 2016, by Beau Compton. Sterling silver; 6 inches by 3 inches by 3 inches. Madison Metro/Courtesy of Craft in America
The ‘Cowboy Craft: Traditional Art of the West’ exhibition at the Craft in America Center, Los Angeles, runs through Sept. 13, 2026. To find out more, visit CraftInAmerica.org.
To find out more about Craft in America’s ‘Handwork: Celebrating American Craft 2026,’ visit Handwork2026.org.
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Lorraine Ferrier writes about fine arts and craftsmanship for The Epoch Times. She focuses on artists and artisans, primarily in North America and Europe, who imbue their works with beauty and traditional values. She's especially interested in giving a voice to the rare and lesser-known arts and crafts, in the hope that we can preserve our traditional art heritage. She lives and writes in a London suburb, in England.
