La Quinta, CA
Civic Center Campus, March 5-8
Tom Barnes, The Gang’s All Here, watercolor, 24 x 48 x 2.
This story was featured in the March/April 2020 issue of Southwest Art magazine. Get the Southwest Art March/April 2020 print issue or digital download now–then subscribe to Southwest Art and never miss another story.
FOR NEARLY 40 years, the La Quinta Arts Festival wowed the Coachella Valley community and countless visitors from farther afield with an array of artworks and fine crafts against the backdrop of Southern California’s Santa Rosa Mountains. This year the four-day show gets a fresh new look under new ownership, and it also carries a brand-new name: the La Quinta Art Celebration. But devotees of the outdoor art exhibition can expect the same high-quality offerings and beautiful setting at the Civic Center campus in La Quinta, CA.
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- Paul Lambrecht, Spring Breeze, spalted maple/walnut, 28 x 18 x 4.
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- Lijah Hanley, Gunsight, photograph, 36 x 72 x 2.
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- Signe & Genna Grushovenko, Look Out!, oil, 24 x 24.
“It was always a superb show, and we want to emulate the old show while enhancing the new one,” says CEO and managing director Paul Anderson. “The show’s tagline is ‘The tradition of art in La Quinta continues with celebration,’” he adds. “It’s been more about ‘let’s take and enhance’ and give patrons an experience they won’t forget.”
When the event debuts on Thursday, March 5, at 10 a.m., 220 juried artists from around the country and beyond open their exhibit booths to visitors. Their creations represent 12 different media categories, including painting, sculpture, glass, ceramics, jewelry, photography, fiber, and wood. Indeed, a one-day tour of the show might not allow enough time to see and savor it all, and visitors may want to build in extra time to explore new event features such as a digital art installation, a gourmet food court and margarita island bar, and stunning sculptures at the entrance. Collectors may also want to spend some time chatting with the artists about their work—which the artists are more than delighted to do, says Anderson. “The artists who participate in outdoor art shows are special,” he says. “They want to connect with the people who buy their artwork, and it’s something an outdoor show has the ability to do.”
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- Dolan Geiman, Indigo Morning Roadrunner, mixed media, 43 x 43.
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- Michael McKee, Purple Mountains Majesty, pastel, 36 x 48.
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- Crystal Lockwood, Celestine, redwood, 38 x 20 x 10.
To celebrate the inaugural show, six featured artists have been chosen to showcase their artwork in a series of commemorative event posters: mixed-media artist Dolan Geiman and painters Erin Hanson, Michael McKee, Signe and Genna Grushovenko, David Palmer, and Tom Barnes. Other artists on the show’s roster include glass artist Patty Roberts, photographer Lijah Hanley, and wood sculptor Paul Lambrecht. “It’s the best of the best,” says Anderson. “This is an amazing array of artists, so patrons and visitors are going to be extremely happy with what they see.” —Kim Agricola
contact information
www.laquintaartcelebration.org
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- David Palmer, California Winter, acrylic, 48 x 60.
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- Patty Roberts, Green Winged Boat, glass, 10 x 34 x 15.
This story was featured in the March/April 2020 issue of Southwest Art magazine. Get the Southwest Art March/April 2020 print issue or digital download now–then subscribe to Southwest Art and never miss another story.
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