Life Theme:

Ronda has devoted her life to giving voice to the wild and to telling stories of strength, survival, and sacred connection between humans and animals. Through her art, photography, writing, and advocacy for America’s wild mustangs, she has “birthed” a legacy of protection and reverence. Her work blends beauty and activism, showing that art can be a vessel for truth and a bridge between worlds. The mustang, to her, is not just a creature of the plains but a mirror of our own spirit; resilient, free, and worthy of being heard. Her life’s purpose has been to champion that voice and preserve the untamed grace that still gallops through the heart of nature.

Symbolism and Composition:

In this portrait, Ronda stands grounded in tall, sunlit grasses, encircled by wild mustangs thundering across the plain, embodiments of freedom and power. Her emerald skirt flows like living earth, rooting her to the land she defends, while her black blouse speaks to strength and authority. The staff she holds blurs the line between brush and scepter, symbolizing both her creative mastery and her role as an advocate and a conduit for the wild’s own story. Above her, a sky of swirling color erupts in painterly light, echoing the brushstrokes of her canvases and suggesting that her art and nature are one continuous creation. The horses’ motion merges with her own form, uniting artist, advocate, and earth in a single pulse of vitality. This is not just a portrait of a woman, but of her ethos “To create is to protect, to speak is to honor, and to live in harmony with the wild is to live truthfully.”