B I O

Scott T. Baxter works out of his studio on the Cattle Track Arts Compound in Scottsdale, Arizona. He has been a professional photographer for more than 30 years. His fine art photography work of the American West captures the dichotomy between the elegance and untamed nature of the West. Baxter’s work is in numerous museums and private collections. Notably, his work is in the permanent collections of The Phoenix Art Museum, Desert Caballeros Western Museum,The Booth Museum of Western Art, Taos Art Museum, Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport Museum and the Scottsdale Public Art Program. 

Baxter says of his work, “My inspiration comes mainly from my subjects rather than other photographers. I certainly appreciate and respect the work of others, especially Jay Dusard, Kurt Markus, Adam Jahiel and Robb Kendrick, but in my own work I just go out and shoot what feels right. I try to let the photograph come to me. I don’t try to consciously force it, or think how another photographer might shoot it. There is so much imagery saturating us today, I find it is better to just follow what works for me.”

Baxter has shot editorially and commercially for Alta Journal, Arizona Highways magazine, The New York Times, Cowboys and Indians, Lucchese Boots, Yeti and Arizona Public Service among others. A large body of Baxter’s work lies in long-term photography projects with historical significance, blending portraiture with working images representing the West. Baxter completed 100 Years 100 Ranchers, a ten year official Legacy Project for the Arizona Centennial. Arizona Highways Editor-In-Chief, Robert Stieve described the projects as, “the best photographs ever made of ranchers in Arizona” with “a historical importance that doesn’t exist anywhere else. 100 Years 100 Ranchers isn’t just a series of artful and captivating black and whites, it’s a permanent record of a way of life – a disappearing way of life.”

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Solo Exhibitions:
2022 - 2023
The Gather, A Portrait of the American West - Scott T. Baxter, Western Spirit, Scottsdale’s Museum of the West
2019-2020
It’s Just a Quick Lope and a Cigarette, Taos Art Museum At Fechin House, Taos, New Mexico
2018
100 Years 100 Ranchers, Arizona Heritage Center Museum, Tempe, Arizona
2017
Life On The Range, Fiat Lux Gallery , Scottsdale, Arizona
2016
Gathering the Remnants, Ryan Gallery, Gilbert, Arizona  
2015
The West, Tucson Desert Art Museum, Tucson, Arizona
The West, Douglas Mariboe Gallery, The Peddie School, Hightstown, New Jersey
2014
The Top Hand Project, The Desert Caballeros Western Museum, Wickenburg, Arizona
2013
100 Years 100 Ranchers, The Scottsdale Public Art Program, Scottsdale, Arizona
The West, The Sixth Avenue Gallery, Phoenix, Arizona
The West, Cattletrack Gallery, Scottsdale, Arizona
2012
100 Years 100 Ranchers, The Tucson Museum Of Art, Tucson, Arizona
100 Years 100 Ranchers, The Desert Caballeros Western Museum, Wickenburg, Arizona
2011 - 2012
100 Years 100 Ranchers, The Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport Museum, Phoenix, Arizona

Group Exhibitions:
2020
The West Through the Lens, The Phippen Museum, Prescott, Arizona
2017
"Having Their Picture Took": Western Portrait Photography Then And Now. Desert Caballeros Western Museum
2014
The Darkroom, Phoenix, Arizona
Light Sensitive, Art Intersection, Gilbert, Arizona
The West Select, The Phoenix Art Museum, Phoenix, Arizona
The West Through The Lens, The Phippen Museum, Prescott, Arizona
2013
The West Select, The Phoenix Art Museum, Phoenix, Arizona
2012
The West Select, The Phoenix Art Museum, Phoenix, Arizona
Landscapes Of The Centennial, The Tempe Center For The Arts, Tempe, Arizona
2011
Ranching, Roughstock, and Rodeo, The Desert Caballeros Western Museum, Wickenburg, Arizona
The West Select, The Phoenix Art Museum, Phoenix, Arizona 

Permanent Collections:
The Phoenix Art Museum
Booth Western Art Museum
The Desert Caballeros Western Museum
The Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport Museum
The Scottsdale Public Art Program
Taos Art Museum
Western Spirit, Scottsdale’s Museum of the West 

Corporate Collections:
Arizona Public Service
National Bank Of Arizona

Books:
Life On The Range, Publisher - Arizona Highways, 2017
100 Years 100 Ranchers, Prisma Graphics, 2012

Grants:
2014
Philip C. Curtis Trust / For The Encouragement Of Art
2011
CTAP: Cattletrack Arts & Preservation 

Awards / Achievements
2021
First Place, Photo Essay, Los Angeles Press Club’s National Art and Entertainment Journalism Awards , Alta Journal
2014
Best of Show, The West Select Exhibition, The Phoenix Art Museum
Gold Medal, Works on Paper, The West Select Exhibition, The Phoenix Art Museum
2012
Inducted as one of Arizona’s 100 Culturekeepers
2012
Addressed the Arizona Senate body for Arizona’s Centennial in January 2012
2011
Cover Photograph of Arizona Highways 50 Greatest Photos