Portrait of chuckwagon champion to be sold at Calgary canvas auction

Paintings honour Kelly Sutherland, the 'king' of chuckwagon racing, and Chanse Vigen. Both paintings go on display Thursday.

A massive new painting of chuckwagon legend Kelly Sutherland will be unveiled at this week’s Calgary Stampede canvas auction, while a second work is being raffled off to raise money for a local charity.

Calgary artist Paul Van Ginkel has completed a 10-foot-by-five-foot oil painting of Sutherland titled The King, a tribute to one of the most decorated drivers in the sport’s history.

• The information you need to know, sent directly to you: Download the CTV News App

Sutherland, a 12-time Calgary Stampede champion and 12-time world champion, said the recognition is humbling.

“It’s a feeling of humbleness,” Sutherland said. “When you’re recognized outside of what you’re trying to do with your own accomplishments, I guess humbling is about the only feeling, and very honored.”

Sutherland, who began racing as a teenager and retired at 65, said his first major win remains his most meaningful.

“I think for everybody, the first one is, you know, especially in whatever sport you’re in, at the highest elevated level, I think if you can achieve that, it’s something that you dream about,” he said.

He said his final championship later in life also stands out.

“I just felt blessed that, that, you know, number one, I could still do something at a competitive level and something I love, but also I could win,” Sutherland said.

Van Ginkel said the scale of the painting reflects Sutherland’s stature in the sport.

“It showcases the subject (Sutherland) in a more grand capacity,” said Van Ginkel.

“I like to paint large because I feel it showcases my work more effectively.”

The artist said the hyper-realistic painting is based on a Stampede reference photo and took about 100 hours to complete.

“With this painting, and most paintings like this, with a lot of detail, I make them all accurate,” he said, adding he paid particular attention to Sutherland’s wagon horses.

“I suspect if I had missed a detail somewhere else on the painting, Kelly (Sutherland) wouldn’t notice, but he knows his team so well that if I made even a tiny change to them he’d say, ‘What’s that about?’”

A second Van Ginkel painting, featuring 2025 Calgary Stampede champion Chanse Vigen, is being used to support Vigen’s charity, I’m Your Huckleberry.

The painting’s stylized pink background reflects the pink sunglasses Vigen and his wife, Brianna, have been selling to raise money for the initiative.

The original painting is being raffled off, with 200 tickets available at $200 each. Buyers also receive a print of the artwork.

I’m Your Huckleberry is a charity founded by Vigen and his wife that provides financial help to families facing sudden hardship, often due to illness or loss.

“We just wanted to target everyday people that ran into some hard luck,” Vigen said.

Funded primarily through the sale of Vigen’s signature pink sunglasses, the program provides direct financial support to individuals dealing with situations such as illness, loss or sudden financial strain.

The charity targets people who may not have access to other forms of assistance, offering what Vigen describes as “a boost” when it’s needed most.

Vigen says the donated painting will help the charity continue its work.

“I think that most people will agree, when we start selling the raffle tickets to help the charity, I think it’s going to do extremely well,” said Vigen.

“People have already reached out to me wanting to know where they can buy tickets... I think it’s going to sell out.”

Van Ginkel said he made the painting because he admires Vigen and his campaign.

“I thought, if I can help and be part of that team, some way, I’m all in,” he said.

Vigen said the charity has already raised about $80,000 through sales of their signature pink sunglasses.

“We’ve gotten to help out some really sweet people that needed a boost,” Vigen said.

The Calgary Stampede canvas auction begins at 6 p.m. Thursday at the Big Four Building on the Calgary Exhibition and Stampede grounds.

More information on the raffle and the charity is available at imyourhuckleberry.ca.

Tickets are also available on Van Ginkel’s website, https://paulvanginkel.com.