Spirit of the West: The Images of David R. Stoecklein Book

A retrospective of photographer David R. Stoecklein, featuring his thirty years of photographing the West. This spectacular coffee-table book presents Stoecklein's best images, published and unpublished. Spirit of the West is a veteran photographer's artistic portfolio as art as well as a tribute to the most uniquely American hero in our culture. David's fascination with the ranching heritage of our American West led him to befriend, and subsequently photograph, the men and women still breathing life into the mythical figure of the cowboy. Documenting today's West quickly became his personal mission. David's genuine concern for preserving the traditions and beliefs of our country's honest, hard-working cowboys and cowgirls gradually earned him their respect. With that respect came an open invitation to share in their lives, and the great responsibility to honor their trust. As put to David by the great Texas rancher, Tom Moorhouse, "the work you are doing is very important to us. You are preserving the West, which is my family and the families of my friends." The 250 photographs in this book have been culled from among nearly 10,000 images that David has published in his books and calendars, and in national and international advertising campaigns. Where his previous books offered detailed photoessays of daily life on ranches across the western states, Spirit of the West links David's strongest images of today's working cowboys, cowgirls and horses to the iconic figures romanticized by Americans from coast to coast. He ties his images together with yarns from his ranch adventures, photographic and otherwise, reminding us that it is the strength of the cowboy's character that ultimately earns our respect and admiration. David's talent in capturing both the dramas and subtleties of light and motion has always elevated his images to the level of art. Spirit of the West reproduces David's art on 252 heavy, 200 gsm pages at 12" square - nothing less than the highest production quality could do justice to the grand myth of the American cowboy as well as the vivid beauty of David's photography.Read More