Show Preview | Quest for the West - Southwest Art Magazine

Indianapolis, IN
Eiteljorg Museum, September 9-October 9

Gladys Roldan-de-Moras, Rodeo Parade in San Antonio, oil, 24 x 36.

This story was featured in the September 2016 issue of Southwest Art magazine. Get the Southwest Art September 2016 print issue or digital download now–then subscribe to Southwest Art and never miss another story.

A bugle call is the traditional way to signal a momentous event, be it a flag-raising, a rallying summons to battle, or the start of a horse race. When the bugle sounds in the Eiteljorg Museum at 6:30 p.m. on Saturday, September 10, it marks an important moment in western art, as 50 minutes of good-natured, frenzied competition commences in the 11th annual Quest for the West Art Show and Sale. A major fundraiser for the museum, the show features works by “many of the best names in western art,” notes Johanna Blume, the Eiteljorg’s assistant curator of western art, history, and culture. One look at the impressive list of 49 participating artists, each contributing up to four pieces, more than supports that statement, including paintings by Logan Maxwell Hagege, Glenn Dean, and Heide Presse; pencil drawings by Brenda Murphy and Mikel Donahue; and sculptures from Veryl Goodnight, Gerald Balciar, and Tim Cherry.

Many of those artists are present during opening-weekend activities. Events begin on Friday afternoon, September 9, with an exclusive tour and ride on the track at the world-famous Indianapolis Motor Speedway, which on May 29 saw the 100th annual running of the Indy 500 auto race. That evening, a reception at the museum honors Betsey Harvey, this year’s Quest Collector of Distinction, whose own personal collection is featured in a special related exhibition. Festivities accelerate on Saturday morning, when the galleries open for viewing before a luncheon, at which this year’s Harrison Eiteljorg Purchase Award winner is announced. In the afternoon, some of the artists take part in Quick Draw demonstrations featuring live models. From 5 to 6:30 p.m. attendees can submit intent-to-purchase slips for any works they desire, before the bugle call launches the luck-of-the-draw selection process for hopeful buyers. Wrapping up the evening is a gala banquet and awards ceremony that also includes a random drawing for some 35 castings of a special Eiteljorg Keepsake sculpture created by Cherry. A Sunday-morning breakfast wraps up the weekend celebration before the show opens to the general public at noon. All purchased works remain on view through the show’s closing date, and purchases continue through that time.

Quest for the West brings a happy spirit of anticipation to its artists. “It’s a beautiful event, and they treat us like royalty,” enthuses Gladys Roldan-de-Moras, whose figurative works honor the Hispanic influence on western culture. She returns to the show for the second time, having been honored in her debut last year as co-recipient with C. Michael Dudash of the show’s Artists’ Choice Award. This year her four paintings include RODEO PARADE IN SAN ANTONIO, a colorful scene from the procession that launches the annual stock show and rodeo in the city where she lives.

Santa Fe-based painter P.A. Nisbet, who’s celebrating his 10th year at the show, observes that the high-profile spotlight it provides brings his contemporary landscapes “more attention both nationally and from individual clients than they get even in the western states. It’s a first-class presentation.” Indeed, one worthy of a trumpet fanfare. —Norman Kolpas

contact information
317.636.9378
www.eiteljorg.org