Show Preview | Evegreen Fine Art: Weekend in the West

Evergreen, CO, August 24-25

Dan Young, Summer Days, oil, 10 x 12.

This story was featured in the August 2012 issue of Southwest Art magazine. Order the Southwest Art magazine August 2012 print edition here, or purchase the Southwest Art magazine August 2012 digital download here. Or simply click here to subscribe to Southwest Art magazine and never miss a story!

This month, Evergreen Fine Art presents its second annual Weekend in the West show, featuring 100 to 120 new artworks by more than 50 artists from around the West. “It’s an end-of-summer celebration,” says gallery owner Barbara Hadley, and a weekend to celebrate the arts in the West. The show opens on Friday night, August 24, with a gala reception from 5 to 8 p.m., at which many of the artists are in attendance. “The opening night is the best,” says participating artist Lindsey Bittner Graham. “I’m so honored to be a part of it. The artwork is vibrant, and the artists are first rate. It’s not your typical old-fashioned western stuff. You have all styles—from the very tightly rendered to the really loose and impressionistic—and every type of subject matter. The gallery just goes all out with the event—the setting, the food, and the entertainment,” she says. Graham presents two new rodeo-themed oil paintings at the show, including PICKIN’ UP THE PAINT, depicting two rodeo cowboys racing to “pick up” a breakaway horse.

A percentage of proceeds from sales on Friday night and other events throughout the weekend are donated to the local Center for the Arts, which distributes funding to local public schools for art programs.

Sarah Webber, Sunshine on My Shoulder, oil, 16 x 16.

Weekend in the West features works in a variety of media, including oil, acrylic, watercolor, and bronze, and by an impressive list of artists that includes Raj Chaudhuri, Dan Beck, Jake Gaedtke, Quang Ho, Janice Sugg, Keith Bond, and Sarah Webber. Landscape painter Pem Dunn says, “It’s a diverse group of artists representing what’s around us in the West in their own styles.” Dunn presents two new works for the show, including MORNING IN THE CANYON, depicting the Colorado River as the sun is just coming over the rim of the Grand Canyon and hitting the water below.

On Saturday morning the show gets a little bit of Wild West flavor with a shotgun start and finish to the Quick Draw event from 9 to 10:30 a.m. The artists then quickly frame the still-wet works and trot them over to the ticketed champagne brunch and auction. Oregon-based artist Mitch Baird says the Quick Draw is a great way for visitors to see the artists in action. “There are a lot of artists all in a space about 50 feet by 50 feet,” he says. “It’s fun, and you can see a lot at once. The whole show is an opportunity to see and buy really good work at a really good price.” Baird brings two paintings to this year’s event—BEAR CREEK BOULDERS, a scene captured along Evergreen’s Bear Creek, and a piece depicting a pastoral valley in Italy’s northern Alto Adige region—both rendered in his signature loose style.

Baird says that this show has a notably more casual feel than many he attends. “Because it’s relaxed, the artists are much more themselves, which brings a different feeling to the event. You can really see who the artists are.”

“It’s a fun weekend,” concludes Hadley. “We’ll do the show every year now.” Weekend in the West remains on display at the gallery until September 24. —Laura Rintala

contact information
303.679.3610
www.evergreenfineart.com

Featured in the August 2012 issue of Southwest Art magazine–click below to purchase:
Southwest Art magazine August 2012 digital download
Southwest Art magazine August 2012 print edition
Or click here to subscribe to Southwest Art magazine and never miss a story!