Bryon's Biography
J. Bryon Test was born in the Oklahoma Panhandle—Guymon, Oklahoma, to be specific. He grew up in that wide-open space of the prairie following his dad through the stubble fields and brush to hunt pheasants and quail and over the dams of the scarce ponds to hunt ducks and geese. What developed from these excursions (and the guiding faith of his mother) was a deep appreciation of the landscape and wildlife which surrounded him. He began at a young age to recreate the images of wildlife and the prairie with paper and watercolor paint.
Bryon left the security and seclusion of the Panhandle after his high school graduation in 1977. He left to obtain a Bachelor of Arts Degree from Southwestern Oklahoma State University in Weatherford, Oklahoma. He achieved that goal in 1981.
Bryon returned to Guymon with his degree to begin his professional art career and start a family of his own. He exhibited his wildlife paintings at many festivals and private showings from 1981-1994. In 1989, he achieved a personal goal of winning a duck stamp competition by the time he was 30 years old. His painting depicting two blue-winged teal was chosen for the Florida Waterfowl Stamp. In 1991, Bryon was commissioned by the Kansas Ducks Unlimited to create the artwork for the waterfowl stamp for that state. His artwork placed high in the ranks of many state duck stamp competitions and the federal duck stamp competition during that 13-year period. Conrad Vollertsen, outdoor journalist for Outdoor Life, Sports Afield, and Peterson’s Hunting magazines wrote of Bryon: “Bryon does have something unique going for himself in his love, understanding, and artistic capture of a place called No Man’s Land, a place for wild things.”
In 1994, Bryon began researching the Cherokee heritage he had been told he possessed through his father’s ancestors. As he searched, he became more and more interested in depicting Native American scenes in his paintings. His field of painting expanded and his artwork became more diverse.
Unfortunately, his art career came to a standstill when his 13-year-old daughter passed away in late 1994. After this tragedy, Bryon found he could not hold a paintbrush steady enough to paint the detail he was accustomed to—the detail required to win duck stamp competitions. He feared his career as a professional artist was over.
In the fall of 1995, Bryon began teaching art classes at the university ten miles from Guymon. At Oklahoma Panhandle State University, the administration knew him and knew what he was capable of creating with a paintbrush. Bryon discovered he could teach the techniques of painting and drawing and share experiences of promoting and selling artwork. Even though his hands would not cooperate for the intimate details of a duck’s wing or a pheasant’s tail, he could share with the students the knowledge he had gained from participating in the art world. This passage of knowledge and sharing of talent helped heal or at least cover the wound of his loss, and Bryon began to paint again.
In the year 2000, Bryon achieved another educational goal. He received his Master of Arts Degree from West Texas A & M University. He now heads the Oklahoma Panhandle State University art department, which is teaming with talent and expectations. He paints landscapes and wildlife scenes, most with a Native American accent. He still enters an occasional duck stamp contest—when the demands of preparing his students for the real world of art allow him the time.
Bryon continues to live in Guymon with his wife, Kelli, and his two sons, J. B. and Jacob. He has partnered with a friend and some of his former students to create Artist Incubation, Inc. in Guymon and this organization has been instrumental in opening two incubator galleries. The Soaring Eagle Gallery opened in late 2002 and Wild Horse Gallery opened in April 2003. In 2005 Bryon received the Governor’s art award for education. Bryon is also the founder of the Paul Farrell Memorial Art Auction. The auction has raised more than $300,000.00 in scholarships to aid in the education of Panhandle State University art students. This year will be the 20th year of the event.
One can visit Bryon at the All Fired Up where he dips a brush in paint and creates with a more-experienced hand a more mature and influenced artwork than ever before—for he has learned that life is an art in itself.
