Small Works in Santa Fe
By Medicine Man Gallery on
Reprinted courtesy Western Art Collector, December 2008
There is no place quite like Santa Fe during the winter season. The downtown streets and adobe buildings are covered in snow, creating a festive atmosphere and the smell of pinon wood from fireplaces fills the air. Over the holiday season, Medicine Man Gallery, located in the heart of the city's art district on Canyon Road, will host its 2nd Annual Santa Fe Winter Small Works Show and Sale Nov. 21, through Jan. 2, 2009.
The gallery invites its nationally acclaimed artists to present new small paintings, including Lisa Danielle, Josh Elliott, Ron Elstad, Gregory Hull, Gregory Kondos, Francis Livingston, Jan Mapes, Glenn Rennell, Peggi Kroll-Roberts, Sue Rother, W. Jason Situ, Gary Ernest Smith and Dennis Ziemienski.
Gregory Hull, Pinion Pine, Oil on Canvas Board, 11" x 14"
Working out of his home studio in Montana, artist Josh Elliott found inspiration for his new works based on the miniature theme of the show.
"I view these small paintings as 'little gems.' I like to make them shiny and full of color. There is a freedom that comes when I paint in a smaller format. One brushstroke can say so much," says Elliott.
Elliott is motivated by beauty and hopes to convey to viewers the joy he had while creating these works, like his oil titled Outside Abiquiu.
"A breathtaking scene moves most people," says Elliott. "I am also motivated by the tools an artist has to make a picture, that is: color, values, composition and paint quality. Sometimes all it will take to motivate me to paint a picture is to see one color next to another. Other times it may be an expression of a value design such as a painting with tight values that you may see during a gray winter day."
Josh Elliott, Outside Abiquiu, Oil on Panel, 10" x 12"
Searching out compositions from nature, Elliott enjoys being outdoors and says he is glad he discovered his passion for painting landscapes.
"Like a writer or a poet is able to do, I can visit a high mountain lake and convey my thoughts of what I saw. I consider it a great gift to be able to share with people our mutual awe of Creation," says Elliott.
Jan Mapes, Senoritas de los Charros, Oil on Canvas, 9" x 12"
As a product of the West, Utah-raised artist Gregory Hull has always felt at home capturing Western landscapes. Now working out of his studio in Sedona, Arizona, Hull continues to skillfully convey the sense of grand vistas on canvas. His work Pinion Pine was inspired by his passion for plein air painting.
Gregory Hull, Morning Cliffs, Oil on Canvas, Board, 6" x 8"
"I was trying to convey the sense of wide open space and atmosphere coupled with the blinding morning light," says Hull. "There is something immediate and gratifying from quickly trying to capture the fleeting patterns of light and shade in a plein air study. Then by taking this information or the technique into the studio, it becomes a challenge to translate onto a larger canvas where it becomes even more powerful."
W. Jason Situ, Cloudy Day in Arroyo, Taos, Oil on Canvas, 14" x 18"
Born in 1949 in Guang Dong, China, during China's Cultural Revolution, artist W. Jason Situ completed his art education at the prestigious Guangzhou Fine Arts Institute and immigrated to the United States in 1989 with his family. Mesmerized by the attractive California landscape, Situ decided to become a plein air painter shortly after arriving in the area. His piece Cloudy Day in Arroyo, Taos was inspired by traveling state-by-state through the Southwest over the past 10 years in his car observing nature.
"I stopped two times at Taos," says Situ. "That is a beautiful place for artists."
Situ has a deep reverence for nature and enjoys painting outdoors.
"I like painting on location," says Situ. "If I can catch all the beauty I see in the world on canvas to share with my friends, then I will be very happy."