Indholdsfortegnelse for February/March 2023 i Southwest Art

“I paint the spirit and soul of what I see.”—Brian Froud FAMED ILLUSTRATOR Brian Froud’s words are true for virtually every artist regardless of subject, and they’re especially relevant for those who celebrate the human form. Whether depicted as a portrait or figure, in repose or in action, an artist’s interpretation of—and affinity for—their subject is key to a compelling work and to its vital connection with the viewer. The featured artists in this issue successfully employ their talents to tell the stories of their favorite people. One of today’s most widely respected and admired painters of western subjects is Bill Anton (see page 58). Through his realistic style graced with finely modulated colors and painterly brush strokes, he conveys the working world of contemporary American cowboys. “I always wanted…

JOHNE RICHARDSON is enamored with the allure of the West, and he faithfully heeds his inner call to paint it. Growing up on the prairie, the Kansas-based artist translates on canvas his lifelong fascination for big skies, wide-open spaces, and the riveting sight of cowboys herding cattle. The array of subjects—landscapes, animals, and portraits—attests to the breadth of Richardson’s creative spirit that finds ready inspiration in the nearby rolling Flint Hills. Yet, he also canvases compelling scenes as far distant as the West Coast. “The reason I paint is to capture the emotional and visual significance of a subject,” Richardson says. “When a subject strikes me as so incredible and beautiful, I have to paint it.” Whether it’s the sunlight playfully caressing a cowboy’s hat brim or a glowing orange-…

THERE’S VERIFIABLE EVIDENCE that in Texas, folks just do things on a grander scale. That certainly holds true for Night of Artists, now in its 22nd year as the annual chief fundraiser for the Briscoe Western Art Museum. The 2023 edition of the exhibition and sale—which opens the weekend of March 24-25 with a roster of dazzling parties, two expert symposia, an auction, and a sale-by-drawing, remains on public view through May 7. It features approximately 300 artworks from some 80 top western artists, on display in two floors of the museum’s 8,000-square-foot Jack Guenther Pavilion. Last year’s similarly sized gathering grossed $2.6 million, more than two and a half times as much as Night of Artists brought in just six years earlier. Beyond the vibrant health of the western…

Experience Amazing Art! 200 premier artists from across the nation, Champagne Bars, Gourmet Food Court, Margarita Island, Winery Row, Live Entertainment laquintaartcelebration.org Terry Sauvé TerrySauve.com • 415-867-8676 • terry@terrysauve.com Michelle McDowell Smith www.michellemcdowellsmith.com • 904-655-7802 • michelle@mcdowellsmith.com Roanoke, VA Tom Boatright www.tomboatright.com • 360-349-5157 • anna@essencearts.org Essence Arts - La Quinta, CA Cassidy Watt www.cassidywatt.com • 917-885-6166 Ventana Fine Art - Santa Fe, NM | www.ventanafineart.com Scanlan Photography www.scanlan.com • 712-526-2375 • customerservice@scanlan.com Michael Rohner Art www.rohnerart.com • 510-394-2866 • mike@rohnerart.com Caryn West www.carynwestart.com • 530-412-3343 • carynmwest@gmail.com Jonathon Stopper www.simplyjonathons.com • 941-922-0581 simplyjonathons@msn.com Charles Sherman www.CharlesShermanArts.com • 310-435-2838 Erik Stewart www.erikstewart.com • 480-734-7805 info@erikstewartjewelry.com Rosario Garcia www.rosariogarciadesigns.com • 954-895-5078 info@rosariogarciadesigns.com…

ON HER FIRST DAY in a UC Berkeley extension course on serigraph/silkscreen printing, Maura Allen asked the instructor if she could print on materials other than paper. It was the mid-1990s, and Allen had just returned from New York City where she had experienced an Andy Warhol exhibition at the International Center of Photography. The show stretched 20 yards, with photography as a product of mass consumption at one end and Warhol’s singular artwork at the other. Allen was inspired, but not to reproduce what Warhol did. “I like learning the rules and then seeing how far I can go, right to the edge of the canyon, using materials in a different way or combining them to create original work,” she says. Among the materials she ended up screen-printing on…

SHANDY STAAB’S TWO LOVES— horses and art—have been constants in her life since childhood. Her equestrian skills and artistic talents were fostered and recognized early on—from winning three national equestrian championships before the age of 10 to winning numerous art contests as a grade schooler. “These two expressions of who I am are as interwoven now as they’ve ever been,” the Colorado-based Staab says. Growing up on a horse ranch introduced her to the equestrian, agricultural, and outdoor lifestyle in which her paintings are rooted today. Staab invites viewers along for the ride, figuratively, as many of her latest works place the viewer in the position of equine rider or driver. Softly layered brushwork and expressive color further the journey. As the former co-manager of an equine center, Staab’s expertise…

THIS FEBRUARY, for the third year in a row, The Legacy Gallery in Scottsdale, AZ, presents The Painted West, a group show featuring 15 of the longstanding establishment’s premiere painters. More than 30 western-focused works—landscapes, Native American and cowboy culture, wildlife, and more—are on display and available for purchase through a fixed-price draw, with an opening reception on Friday, February 17. The Painted West marks the gallery’s first exhibition of 2023, and the goal is to kick off the new year in style and stature by showcasing the latest works in a broad range of approaches, subject matter, and sizes. “One of the things that’s most exciting about The Painted West is the diversity,” says Haley Delaunais, the gallery’s marketing manager. “Each artist has his own voice, presentation, and style,…

THIS FEBRUARY, for the second year in a row, Cobalt Fine Arts Gallery hosts Arizona Wild!, a group exhibition held in conjunction with the 64th annual Tubac Festival of the Arts. Barbara Meikle, Cynthia Duff, Kate McCavitt, Keoni, and Trevor Swanson each exhibit five to 10 significant pieces and smaller works in unique styles and media that complement the Arizona gallery’s contemporary southwestern milieu. “The creative processes of these artists are really the theme of this exhibition,” says Mesia Hachadorian, the gallery owner and director. “At Cobalt, we’re always focused on exciting and unique materials or techniques, such as Duff’s interesting use of birch wood as her canvas or the contemporary interpretation of traditional designs on Keoni’s spectacular wood baskets. Meikle composes and balances the color in her work brilliantly,…

NOW IN ITS FOURTH YEAR, the original La Quinta Art Celebration returns to the picturesque La Quinta Civic Center Park, in La Quinta, CA, this March. The event showcases 200 national and international artists who exhibit and sell their work on a sprawling campus under the Santa Rosa Mountains in the Coachella Valley. A broad range of styles, media, and genres are on display—from artists such as Chris Dellorco, Tom Boatright, Cindy Olmes, Daryl Thetford, Erin Hanson, Marcus Thesing, John Scanlan, Lisa Kristine, Patty Roberts, Guilloume, and more. Their work was juried into the show from more than 1,000 international entries. Among the featured works are drawings, paintings, sculpture, 2-D mixed media, 3-D mixed media, ceramics, fiber art, glass works, and jewelry. All art is for sale directly from the…

“ART HAS ALWAYS BEEN a part of who I am,” says Texas artist Sherry Harrington, who has established herself as a consummate figure painter and student of Native American people and practices. The largely self-taught artist finds her strength in art and fulfillment in the connections that both inspire and result from her creativity. As a child, Harrington was a voracious artist and, in her words, drew “anything that moved.” She had obvious talent, and requests for drawings were frequent. Her talent blossomed further when she was 12 years old and enrolled in a painting class with her mother. Not only did she hold her own among her adult classmates, but soon she was showing and selling her work. It was the beginning of art’s powerful presence in Harrington’s life—and…

THE LIGHT FALLS SOFTLY in Gustavo Ramos’ paintings, enveloping forms with exquisite clarity and casting airy shadows in quiet rooms. His subjects are timeless, and the compositions are thoughtfully considered combinations of shapes that endow the scenes with a classical balance and repose. The paint handling, with its luminous glazes, subtle colors, and delicate modeling, belongs more to the world of the old masters like Johannes Vermeer and Rembrandt than the rough-and-tumble of contemporary life. Given the rich qualities in Ramos’ paintings, it’s no surprise that the artist is a keen student of art history and views his work in a lively and dynamic relationship with the artists of previous centuries. “When I was about 10 years old, I came across a Michelangelo drawing in a magazine that really stuck…