Show Preview | Masters in Miniature

Jackson, WY
Trailside Galleries, July 21-August 2

Guy Coheleach, Do I Hear a Mouse I, oil, 8 x 14.

This story was featured in the July 2014 issue of Southwest Art magazine. Get the Southwest Art July 2014 print issue or digital download now–then subscribe to Southwest Art and never miss another story!

Big names, small works. Huge diversity, comfortably sized prices. The paradox of less-is-more finds full expression in the miniature, especially when internationally renowned artists take advantage of an invitation to downshift in size. Events like Trailside Galleries’ annual Masters in Miniature Exhibition and Sale provide art lovers and collectors with a rare opportunity to take home fine art that exemplifies masterful qualities, yet on a diminutive scale. “There’s something about small paintings—they can be very spontaneous, and in that spontaneity, the artist nails it,” notes Trailside Galleries director Joan Griffith. Trailside’s fourth annual miniatures show—July 21 through August 2—takes place during the height of the summer season in Jackson, WY. With lots of visitors in town, an exhilarating atmosphere surrounds the event, which features more than 200 works—primarily paintings and some small sculpture—by the gallery’s entire roster as well as invited guest artists, more than 100 artists in all. Many of them are present to visit with collectors during the reception and sale by draw, set for Thursday, July 24, from 5 to 8 p.m.

“The show continues to grow and evolve as the gallery brings in new talent to participate in the event. The show provides a wonderful platform to showcase these small jewels with a wide range of subject matter and artistic styles,” Griffith says. Genres represented include wildlife painting and sculpture—always popular in Jackson—as well as western, cowboy, landscape, seascape, still-life, floral, and figurative works. In a format generally no larger than 8 by 10 or 9 by 12 inches, styles range from traditional to contemporary, from tightly rendered realism to more impressionistic, interpretive approaches.

William Whitaker, Antique, oil, 12 x 9.

Among the many participating gallery artists are Bill Anton, Morgan Weistling, Mian Situ, Z.S. Liang, Dan McCaw, and longstanding Cowboy Artists of America member Jim Norton. Wildlife artists, such as Kyle Sims, Sherry Salari Sander, and Dustin Van Wechel, bring the world of wild creatures to the small stage for this show. And joining the gallery artists are special guest artists, many of whom have taken part in Trailside’s miniatures  exhibitions in the past. These include internationally acclaimed British painter Pip McGarry, known for capturing the majestic beauty of African wildlife; award-winning American figurative painter Joseph Lorusso; and Sonya Terpening, who creates luminous figurative pieces and other works in watercolors and oils. Also participating is the artist family of Karen Latham and her daughters, Bonnie and Rebecca, who specialize in exquisitely realistic wildlife imagery in miniature.

To provide all interested parties with an equal opportunity to purchase art  that speaks to them, all works in the Masters in Miniature show are offered for sale by draw during the July 24 reception. Images are posted on a special page on the gallery website as the art comes  in, and a catalogue is available both in hard copy and for viewing electronically. The sale-by-draw format “lends to the excitement of the evening,” Griffith says. “It’s fun!” —Gussie Fauntleroy

contact information
307.733.3186 or 480.945.7751
www.trailsidegalleries.com

Featured in the July 2014 issue of Southwest Art magazine–click below to purchase:
Southwest Art July 2014 print issue or digital download Or subscribe to Southwest Art and never miss a story!