David W. Hafer

David Hafer (b. 1941- d.2024) was born in Lewistown, MT.  He started playing trumpet at age 5 under his father's tutelage. He excelled at the trumpet by the time he started school and took advanced music classes at the University of MT.  He continued playing the trumpet into college where he organized a jazz band called the Blue Hawks.  He received a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from the University of Montana. He continued his studies at Marquette University in WI. He received a degree in Oral & Maxillofacial surgery.  Hafer retired from a career as a surgeon in Great Falls. His time in Great Falls  offered him the opportunity to attend the Charlie Russell auction annually. It gave them great exposure to and appreciation for fine art. After retirement he moved to Polson  where he found his surgeon's skill became a natural tool in applying paint to canvas.  A Christmas gift from his wife Bobbie, with the help of famed artist and teacher Mark Ogle, gave Hafer  all he needed to get started; easel, paints, brushes, and a few art lessons from Ogle.   

 

Hafer found the beauty in Western Montana hard to exceed, with Glacier Park at their backdoor, Flathead Lake and surrounding areas that all keep him inspired and his brush busy on the canvas.  “Painting places me more intensely into appreciation of God’s creation as I try to capture what I now see with fresh eyes”, says David.  He wanted the viewer to imagine themselves in the environment of his paintings—breathing the air, observing nature, and marveling at all the beauty in God’s creation.