“Ignoring the need to create something would be ignoring who I am at my core. I’ve always leaned toward picking up a pencil or a brush and seeing what happened next. Most of the time I am encouraged by what I make, but it’s always the feeling I have while creating that I return for. That feeling guides my artistic pursuits.”

Hunter Saltzgiver went to Azusa Pacific University and got a degree in fine art. Saltzgiver then taught K-8 Art in his hometown of Colorado Springs for 5 years before moving to Austin in 2016. Saltzgiver always planned on teaching art and never really planned on making his art into a business, but he said, “when you do something everyday that people enjoy, and you run out of wall space in your home, I guess that’s how it goes.”

Now, Saltzgiver does custom commission work on the side of his creative work. He paints animals (mainly dogs and bears) with acrylics, and he also forms relief landscapes with layered gesso that he calls ‘Whitescapes’.

“All of my bear paintings over the last 2 years I have gotten scanned through Miller IDS. These paintings have a lot of color variety, layers of contrasting colors, and I infrequently mute my paint making scans a tough thing to dial in. Dana, at the 7th St. location, has the critical eye to match nearly every scan I’ve thrown at her and those that haven’t she’s been easy to work with on making the adjustments. I keep going back to Miller for their professionality, their performance and their pricing.”

Feel free to reach out and inquire about pricing on Hunter’s creative work you see on Instagram, making a custom bear or ‘Whitescape’, or commissioning any of the common gifts like pet portraits and wedding gifts.