James F. Jackson: Legacy in Art and Leather at Brinton

The Brinton Museum, Big Horn, WY announced on March 5 that there will be a retrospective exhibition James F. Jackson: Legacy in Art and Leather at Brinton. The exhibit spans a career of nearly 50 years, featuring 47 paintings and hand-carved leather works by renowned, nationally award-winning artist Jim Jackson from Sheridan.

Brinton Museum Curatorial Director Jochen Wierich describes Jackson’s prolific career as an “unlikely marriage: leather tooling and modern art,” which is what sets Jackson apart from many of his contemporaries.

James F. Jackson, Roping the Wind 2023, oil on wood panel, Private Collection

The exhibition is presented as part of The Brinton Museum’s 2026 season theme, Our Legends, which celebrates the artists, histories, and stories that have shaped the American West and the community surrounding the historic Quarter Circle A Ranch.

A reception for the artist takes place on March 12 from 5 to 7 PM. Light refreshments will be served and a cash bar will be available.

A second reception at The Brinton Museum, held in conjunction with the annual Rocky Mountain Leather Trade Show (May 15 – May 17) at Sheridan College, takes place on May 15 from 6 to 8 PM. Both receptions are offered free and open to the public.

Additional programming includes a Member Meet-Up: Jim Jackson Gallery Talk on April 11 from 10 to 11 AM, as well as Echoes of Ornamentation: Wyoming Baroque& Jim Jackson, a ticketed event featuring music by the Wyoming Baroque ensemble and guest speaker Wyoming Baroque Music Director Dr. Mark Elliot Bergman, on May 13 from 5 to 7 PM.

Jackson holds the distinction of being the only leather craftsman who started as a leather carver in a saddle shop, pursued studies in the fine arts, and in 2019, received the prestigious National Endowment for the Arts National Heritage Fellowship Award, one of the nation’s highest honors in the arts. Jackson is a familiar figure to The Brinton Museum, the Sheridan community, and beyond, who has known Jim from his longtime career working at King’s Saddlery.

In the spring of 2017, Jackson moved his studio to the museum’s Leather Shop located on the majestic Quarter Circle A Ranch. At the Haunted Brinton Halloween event 2025, Jackson was the main character at the haunted leather shop.

While working as a prolific leather carver, Jackson continually works at home painting in oil on wood panels, canvas, and on leather. Many of these pieces are highlighted in his retrospective show.

James F. Jackson, Hide – and Seek, 1979, oil on wood panel, Private Collection

“I relish a direct experience that sparks my curiosity, captures my attention and then lingers in my mind. In those most opportune moments, I usually consider possibilities for a painting. I aspire to create visual equivalents that render the true nature of these events.” — James F. Jackson

Jackson is internationally known for his leather work, having curated a cross-cultural exhibition featuring American and Japanese leather artisans presented at The Brinton Museum in 2022. He has received numerous commissions for carved leather pieces for celebrities and U.S. Presidents. However, his career spans a larger scope beyond his leather work. Presidents. In the 1980s, he completed a large award-winning mural, 15’ x 80’, at the Symphony Tower Complex in San Diego, California, along with several other commissioned works.

His paintings are influenced by many art movements including Art Nouveau, Expressionism, and Cubism. Nonetheless, Jackson has developed a style distinctly recognizable as his own. Among Jackson’s many awards, he was a recipient of the Wyoming Governor’s Arts Award in 2019. The Brinton Museum is honored to host this major retrospective exhibition recognizing an important figure in the arts.

James F. Jackson, Cat Becoming a Book, 2008, oil on wood panel, Private Collection

James F. Jackson: Legacy in Art and Leather is on display in the Jacomien Mars Reception Gallery beginning March 13. The exhibition continues through August 3.

“Over the past twelve years, Jim Jackson has worked from his leather shop on The Brinton Museum’s grounds where he has given leather tooling demonstrations to thousands of visitors. Now we are thrilled to be sharing with our visitors a retrospective exhibition that covers more than four decades of leather craft and painting by this Wyoming treasure. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to see the full scope of Jim Jackson’s remarkable career in art and leather.” – Jochen Wierich

James F. Jackson: Legacy in Art and Leather is made possible through the generosity of the Wyoming Cultural Trust Fund, a program of the Department of State Parks and Cultural Resources; Wyoming Arts Council, which receives support from the State of Wyoming and the National Endowment for the Arts; Edwin T. Meredith Foundation; Tucker Foundation; Bozeman Trail Gallery; Steerhead Ranch; and anonymous donors. Loans come from many private collections.

James F. Jackson: Legacy in Art and Leather is made possible through the generosity of the Wyoming Cultural Trust Fund, a program of the Department of State Parks and Cultural Resources; Wyoming Arts Council, which receives support from the State of Wyoming and the National Endowment for the Arts; Edwin T. Meredith Foundation; Tucker Foundation; Bozeman Trail Gallery; Steerhead Ranch; and anonymous donors. Loans come from many private collections.

About The Brinton Museum – Founded in 1960, The Brinton Museum is an institution dedicated to preserving the art, history and culture of the West. Located on the historic Quarter Circle A Ranch in the foothills of the majestic Bighorn Mountains, it features 19th, 20th and 21st century American and Indian Art in a historic Western setting. The Brinton Museum offers free general admission and is a participating member of the North American Reciprocal Museum (NARM) Association.

For more information contact Jochen Wierich, Curatorial Director jwierich@thebrintonmuseum.org, or call main # 307-672-3173 Direct # 307-763-5931. More information about collections, exhibitions and programs is available at thebrintonmuseum.org

Photos of Jackson’s art courtesy of Brinton Museum.