Gossiping with the Cook by Bill Hill (William Lee Hill, 1922–2009)

In Gossiping with the Cook, Western Impressionist Bill Hill captures a quiet yet vivid moment of frontier camaraderie. Two cowboys on horseback pause outside a rustic log cabin, exchanging conversation with the camp cook—a common but intimate scene in the life of the American West. Hill’s loose, expressive brushwork and earthy palette reflect the warmth and grit of ranch life, a subject he knew intimately.

Born in Star Valley, Wyoming, in 1922, Hill spent his life painting and sculpting the landscapes and people of the West. A World War II veteran, he served as a tail gunner aboard a B-17 bomber before dedicating his postwar years to art. He passed away in 2009 in Logan Utah.

Oil on canvas

15 x 30 in.