Sedona News – Everyone at Rowe Fine Art Gallery, artists and art collectors included, is trying to hold onto the fleeting days of summer and the golden hours that inspire some of the best artwork. Kick off your Labor Day Weekend celebration at Rowe Fine Art Gallery as we pay homage to carefree days during Summer Serenade, opening Friday, September 2, at 4 p.m. The show continues through the end of the month.
Catch up with your favorite gallery artists to see what they’ve been working on for the past three months. Some have been prolific, taking advantage of long days to paint and sculpt and prep for world renowned shows. Others decided to use the season to recharge and gain inspiration for the remainder of the year.
If you’re sculptor Shirley Eichten Albrecht, there’s no such thing as downtime. For the second year in a row, Shirley has been juried into the National Basketry Organization’s members-only show. Shirley’s Regalia sculpture is featured in the virtual exhibit, which runs through the end of the year. She was one of 165 artists from five countries chosen to participate.
In the meantime, Shirley has two new pieces in the September show, both of which highlight her mastery of color. Soothe the Soul features a tall-body gourd painted a dreamy shade of turquoise and woven with purple, teal and lavender waxed linen and glass beads. Golden Beauty makes us nostalgic for summer – even before it’s over. The gourd is painted a warm shade of yellow and woven with golden yellow, purple and lavender waxed linen and tiny purple glass beads.
Bronze wildlife sculptor Kim Kori has also been busy with exhibitions. Kim’s Dragonfly at Rest bronze was accepted into the Society of Animal Artists virtual show, while Rapid Transit was juried into the Society’s 62nd Annual Art & the Animal Exhibition and Tour. Rapid Transit was one of only 28 sculptures selected for the international show.
Recently, Kim has been reflecting on her body of work, and one piece especially stands out for her at this time of the year. Double Jeopardy depicts moths around a candle flame, while a spiny lizard takes it all in from below. “I often watch moths dance around the candle flames on summer evenings,” says Kim. “I’ve imagined at times how delighted a lizard would be to come across this gathering, which at the same time would put the moths in double jeopardy.”
This month, Julie T. Chapman will also be participating in two prestigious shows. First up is Western Visions, the National Museum of Wildlife Art’s fundraiser and one of the signature events of the Jackson Hole Fall Arts Festival in Wyoming. And at the end of the month, she’ll take part in the Buffalo Bill Art Show & Sale in Cody, Wyoming. Though she’s been busy prepping for both shows (and working on pieces that will debut in the gallery later this year), Julie stepped away from her easel this summer to nourish her favorite pastime: horses.
Painter Jen Farnsworth is putting the final touches on new works that the gallery will debut soon. In the meantime, Jen gave us this update: “This spring, I had great fun exploring new mediums and mixed media techniques with my art. I have continued the exploration and experimentation this summer. I am finding new ways to express my love of wildlife and nature with even more color and texture. I am currently working on several new canvases where I use not only ink, alcohol, graphite and tea, but also my vibrant palette of oil colors. Of course I have a new coyote, a bobcat and even an agave making its last stand. It has been a great labor of love!”
John Rasberry recently completed two new oil paintings inspired by the Southwest’s Native American cultures. To Greener Pastures features a Navajo woman moving her sheep into a canyon for the summer. John remembers the day he came upon the scene that inspired the painting. “It was hot and dry, and all was still and quiet except the movement of the sheep and the distant sound of the bell from a bellwether ewe,” he says.
John’s second painting, No Particular Hurry, shows another Navajo woman riding her horse in Monument Valley as storm clouds gather on the horizon.
In addition to these artists, Rowe Fine Art Gallery represents painters Dane Chinnock, Kim Diment, Lynn Heil, Gary Jenkins and Amy Ringholz along with sculptors
Alvin Marshall, Erik Petersen, Joel Petersen, Ken Rowe and Joshua Tobey, and jewelers Liam Herbert and Jennifer Inge.
Rowe Fine Art Gallery represents traditional and contemporary southwestern artists. The gallery, located under the bell tower in Patio de las Campanas at Tlaquepaque Arts & Shopping Village, is open Monday through Thursday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and Friday through Sunday, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. For more information, call 928-282-8877, visit rowegallery.com, or find us on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.