Born on a farm in Maine, William Herbert DUNTON (born August 28, 1878, Augusta, Maine–died March 18, 1936, Taos, New Mexico) became a leading American illustrator and renowned painter in the early art colony of Taos, New Mexico. His specialty was painting the untamed West before it disappeared. Settling in Taos, William Herbert Dunton pursued his favorite subject matter with free rein: The open range, hunters, cowboys on horseback, and scenes representing native life before the influx of Europeans. He seemed particularly concerned with recording the ways and appearances of the Old West, a lifestyle that he felt was significant but fading before his very eyes. "The West has passed - more's the pity. In another 25 years the old-time westerner will have gone too - gone with the buffalo and the antelope. I'm going to hand down to posterity a bit of the unadulterated real thing..." William Herbert Dunton exerted his skills for rendering detail to achieve exact authenticity in clothing, equipment, and the powerful muscles of horses. The precision of his painting, along with the hint of drama, were the hallmarks of his work. In addition to painting, Dunton also did precise lithographs of animals.