For generations, the work of the cowboy has meant branding cattle, mending fences, and breaking broncos.

Today, for cowboy artists, work means casting bronzes, painting oils and watercolors, and carving alabaster and marble.

This is the Museum of Western Art, showcasing the work of artists who live and work throughout the Southwest, those striving to carry on the legacy of great Western artists such as Remington and Russell and to teach a new generation the intricacies of Western art.

The museum's mission is unique. "There are other museums that specialize in Western art, but this one specializes in living artists," explains the museum's public relations coordinator, Diana Comer.

The museum (formerly the Cowboy Artists of America Museum) was designed by the late architect O'Neill Ford, making it a work of art itself. Framed within 10 acres of the rolling Hill Country, the limestone building is tucked into a landscape dotted with native Texas plants. Behind massive hacienda-style doors, the 14,366-square-foot structure is massive in scale, a fitting environment to showcase the work that captures the spirit of the sprawling American West. The main gallery displays changing exhibits.

Tear yourself away from the artwork of the main room to look up at the ceiling and its unusual boveda domes, a type of construction rarely seem outside Mexico. Lightweight bricks are positioned without forms or wires to create these concave domes. This form of construction, now practically a lost art, dates back to the Moors' invasion of Spain and was introduced into the New World by the Conquistadors.

The floor of the gallery continues the utilization of native materials. Cross-sections of mesquite form blocks used to tile the floor.

Off the main room, a smaller gallery focuses on the work of emeritus and deceased members. Don't miss the representation of the working studio of Robert Lougheed, a native Canadian who first worked as an illustrator, then as a Western artist until his death in 1982.

The building surrounds an open courtyard, where sculpture stands on display. Spend a few minutes gazing at "The Stalking Horse," a bronze by Gary Carter, to admire the connection captures here between a man and his horse. Exhibits throughout the museum change approximately four times a year.

Although you'll see varying styles and media, all of the artwork is carefully and meticulously researched to portray the West realistically. A library containing thousands of cataloged books and images scholars and artists alike.

The museum also hosts art workshops and seminars in Kerrville. Every year, a handful of Houston students are selected as recipients of the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo Art Scholarship Program, spending one month at the museum learning from a cowboy artist.

For both artist and art lover, the museum is a place to view some of the finest example of Western art in the country. Look at the sculpture "The Rough String" by Grant Speed to see a cowboy frozen in time, as he jumps off a horse reared and about to fall over backwards. Or look at the quiet calmness of "In Search of the Snow Goose", by Fritz White, at 10 x 7 x 3 inches one of the smallest works in the museum.

In each of the galleries, these examples of western art remind guests of the rugged individuals who called this land home a century ago. The Indians, who lived off the land and made it part of their culture, the pioneers, who left the security of the East for a new life, and the cowboys, who welcomed the challenge of breaking a wild mustang or rounding up a herd of cattle.

The artwork, whether it's portraying buffalo herds stampeding across the dusty plains, cowboys taking a toss off the saddle, or Indians looking out over miles of unbroken prairie, captures the attention of visitors from around the globe. "Western art is growing in popularity," says Comer. "The old art forms told the story of life in those days and that's what this is doing. It is finally getting the attention it deserves."

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