STEPHENVILLE, Texas — The Department of Visual Arts and Design at Tarleton State University is showcasing the prints and illustrations of Blu Dornan in the Clyde H. Wells Fine Arts Center Gallery through Feb. 2. 

The exhibition, open to the public, features original works and prints from his Return to Remuda Horse Sale catalogue. 

Dornan, an illustrator/artist living in Stephenville, received his BFA in studio art at Tarleton State in 2014. A former rodeo competitor, he devotes his drawing skills to designing imagery for the western apparel market and to creating cowboy action scenes for juried shows and commissions. 

His graphics have been used by numerous distinguished rodeo venues, including the Pendleton Round Up, National Finals Rodeo and Cowboy Capital PRCA Rodeo. His artwork has developed a following among cowboys and cowgirls in the industry and has been juried in art shows such as the Stars of Texas, the Bosque Classic and the National Western Heritage and Cowboy Hall of Fame Museum. 

Using such traditional tools as paintbrushes and pens as well as nontraditional utensils like toothbrushes and sponges, Dornan creates imaginative scenes packed with story. 

“I want my artwork to look like an actual drawing, not as if it was painstakingly copied from a photograph,” he says. “I enjoy scribbling to create form and using spontaneous ink splatters for the explosive action of a ­fleeting moment. I try to remove ego or self from the process and allow the art to emerge in its own way.” 

He is highly influenced by East Asian artwork and works predominantly in ink. He strives to highlight the Yin and Yang duality of nature with its positive and negative space through mainly black and white images. He synthesizes eastern and western culture by blending East Asian technique and medium with the western folklore of Charles Russell and Edward Borein. 

A founding member of The Texas A&M System, Tarleton State is breaking records — in enrollment, research, scholarship, athletics, philanthropy and engagement — while transforming the lives of nearly 17,000 students in Stephenville, Fort Worth, Waco, Bryan and online. True to Tarleton’s values of excellence, integrity and respect, academic programs emphasize real world learning and address regional, state and national needs.