About THE ARTIST

Western artist Maia Chávez Larkin was born in the artists’ community of Woodstock, NY to a family of artists. Her father, Edward Chávez, started his career creating murals in public spaces across the West through the WPA initiative. After moving East following WWII, he became an integral part of the Woodstock artists’ colony, a member of the National Academy of Design, and a professor at the New York Art Students League. His works exist in the collections of the Whitney, MoMA, The Hirshorn Collection and the Library of Congress. Her mother, Eva van Rijn, is an award winning conservation artist who was for many years the president of the Board of Directors at the Woodstock School of Art. Her wildlife and landscape paintings are in the collections of six art museums. 

Along with learning from her parents and a community of artists in both Woodstock and Taos, Maia has studied architectural illustration at the New York School of Interior Design, as well as painting and drawing with Il Chiostro in Vagliagli, Italy and the Woodstock School of Art in Woodstock, NY. 

Her work has shown in galleries including the Kiesendahl + Calhoun Gallery in Beacon, NY, the Fletcher Gallery in Woodstock, NY and Kuehl Fine Art in Trinidad, CO. She has also worked for nearly two decades as a professional illustrator. Her work has been juried into the Cowgirl Gathering Art Show 2023 and 2024,  New Western Talent 2023, Women's Work 2024 , the 54th and 55th Annual Mountain Oyster Club Art Shows, Small Works, Great Wonders at the National Cowboy Museum 2024, and the Coors Young Guns art show at the upcoming 2025 National Western Stock Show.