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Biography |
Carlos Hadaway was born in Portsmouth, Virginia, and raised
in San Diego, California. He is the oldest of six in a family known as
"The Wild Bunch". While still a child, he suffered blindness
twice and underwent six eye operations to eventually regain his sight. As a
youngster, his keen interest in art was encouraged and nurtured by his
third-grade teacher, Sister Helen Theresa. During service in the Navy, Carlos was a cartoonist and created the original logo for the San Diego Padres (more info), the little bat-swinging Friar. After leaving the military, Carlos relocated to Arizona where he launched his professional art career and became known as The Arizona Kid.
Carlos participates in top shows in all the western states and has garnered numerous awards, including Best of Show at Old Town Tempe's Festival of the Arts and the George Phippen Popular Award at the George Phippen Western Art Show in Prescott, Arizona. One of his paintings hangs in the Arizona State Capitol, presented to the State of Arizona by Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor. Licensed by Anheuser-Busch, Carlos created a series of six western prints featuring Budweiser® that has since become a collector's item.
As an artist, he has achieved success nationally and internationally, having appeared on television, radio and in newspapers and magazines. His work is found virtually all over the world.
Two highlights in Carlos' life were being selected as the 1994 Grand Marshal at the world's oldest rodeo, Prescott Frontier Days and 1992 Grand Marshal at the Pine Country Pro Rodeo in Flagstaff, Arizona.
In 1999, Scottsdale's Parada Del Sol,
Arizona's premiere rodeo, commissioned Carlos to create the original artwork for
the year 2000 celebration. 
Carlos has a large following who appreciate his unique style and true love of the West. When he's not painting, it's no surprise that his favorite pastimes are cowboying and collecting western memorabilia.
