About the Artist

Born and raised in San Antonio, Texas, Katelyn Lester is an artist and educator who uses photography to explore the relationship between people and the land through the lens of the cowboy lifestyle. Drawing on her family's history of breaking horses and farming in South Texas, as well as her own experiences with western culture, she captures the beauty, hardships, and dedication inherent in the western way of life. Katelyn has spent several years documenting the culture of rodeos, working with the San Antonio Stock Show and Rodeo as well as small-town rodeos in South Texas and North Carolina. She holds an MFA in Experimental and Documentary Arts from Duke University and a BFA in Photography from Texas State University, and she currently teaches photography at Duke.