(LEX 18) — There is so much beauty to take in at the Kentucky Derby, from the horses to the fashion to all of the artwork painted around Churchill Downs.
A lot of that artwork is courtesy of the official Kentucky Derby artist—and he's somebody central Kentuckians know pretty well.
Wylie Caudill, a native of Cynthiana and current resident of Lexington, has transformed the entire state into his canvas since being named the official artist for Churchill Downs and Woodford Reserve for the 150th Run for the Roses. His vibrant and dynamic paintings have become synonymous with the Kentucky Derby and Woodford Reserve.
"The craziest thing is that my name is on the bottle," said Caudill. "To me, that was crazier than my artwork being on the bottle that my name is here and it's spelled right and everything."
Caudill's journey to becoming the official Kentucky Derby artist started with a seemingly "vague" email from Woodford Reserve. Little did he know, this was the beginning of a remarkable chapter in his career.
"It just said, 'Would you like to do artwork related to the Derby?' and I said, 'Yeah, sounds like a great opportunity,' Caudill explains. "Then, the second email came with a PDF of exactly what the job entailed, and it was to be the official artist of not only Woodford Reserve but also Churchill. I quickly realized how large of a job this is."
"It's not something that just comes overnight. It's something where we were really watching Wylie, watching his career," said Megan Breier, Homeplace Manager for Woodford Reserve. "We knew it had to be somebody that had that bold liveliness that was really going to make a statement."
"2019, 2020 maybe when I was just sort of starting out as a full-time artist, I did a video of blue roses and it was first video to ever go viral, so I just kind of kept it around," said Caudill. "People just kind of knew me as the guy that painted roses. I do some content that's kind of funny, YouTuber, influencer content, but really 95% of my stuff is just me painting, so if people recognize me from the artwork, that is such a validation."
"He's humble, but he's extremely talented," said Breier. "I think we are lucky to just be on the journey with him. Woodford Reserve definitely didn't put him on the map, but we're part of the journey he's on right now as an artist."
"Someone texted me today and they were on a flight and the magazine on the flight which is not a local magazine has me in it for the Derby for this bottle," said Caudill. "Everyone who's on that flight gets this magazine. I didn't try to reach outside of Kentucky but it's putting me across the nation and globally."
Caudill says he'll feel relieved on Derby day and be able to soak it all in. As a Kentucky native, he understands things on a more intimate level.
Caudill's love for his home state is palpable. "I love when things that are so Kentucky are not just popular but they're also like purely Kentucky," he says.
His art, deeply rooted in Kentucky's essence, is a source of pride for the state and its people.
Wylie grew up on a thoroughbred farm and is no stranger to racehorses.
If you want to keep up with his work, you can follow him on Instagram by searching @wyliecaudillart.
