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Art & Antiques | January 2006
Southwestern Haute Spot
Scottsdale's winter arts scene heats up.
Boasting 125 galleries and museums, nearly 200 golf courses, 67 resorts and more than 600 restaurants, Scottsdale, Arizona, is a thriving destination for art and antiques enthusiasts. With an average temperature of 72.6 degrees, wintertime in Scottsdale offers an inviting experience for visitors during its peak tourist season from January to April.
Collectors ranging from the novice to the connoisseur converge on this flourishing cultural scene in the heart of the calming Sonora Desert, which plays host to upwards of 7.4 million visitors annually. A strong relationship between galleries, boutiques, local artists and restaurants in the downtown Scottsdale arts and shopping districts enables the city to engage visitors through a variety of activities and programs throughout the year such as the Scottsdale ArtWalk, a Thursday evening tradition in which galleries stay open late and businesses come together to bring musical and visual entertainment to the downtown area. Established artists mingle with visitors and are happy to discuss their work. The featured art-ranging from Western and Native American to abstract, impressionism, contemporary-is available in a realm of mediums.
The Scottsdale Convention & Visitors Bureau and the Scottsdale Cultural Council annually sponsor Culture Quest Scottsdale, a program designed to link culture seekers with Scottsdale's extensive menu of high-end special events, gallery exhibits, museums and performing arts venues, as well as with other arts and cultural attractions. To help visitors navigate all of Scottsdale's arts and cultural offerings, the visitor's bureau publishes its quarterly "Culture Quest Scottsdale" brochure that includes an extensive calendar of events, exhibits, performances and interactive programs, as well as feature articles on area attractions. These guides are available at all resort and hotel concierge desks and at Scottsdale CVB visitors' centers.
One of the city's favorite Thursday pastimes for more than 30 years is the Scottsdale ArtWalk. Locals and visitors alike enjoy the camaraderie that ensues while the galleries throughout the arts district keep their doors open later than usual (from 7 to 9 p.m.) for the public. Sponsored by the Scottsdale Gallery Association (SGA), the nighttime activity includes entertainment from live music to gallery shows to artists' receptions.
Adding to the reputable realm of artistry in this collector's haven is ARTscottsdale, held March 23-26 at WestWorld, a special-events venue located in the shadows of the McDowell Mountains in North Scottsdale. Founded on the principles of the Emerging Artist '05 show design, ARTscottsdale brings more than 60 of the nation's top galleries together under one roof, focusing on the most sought-after mediums of today's collectors. The juried three-day show—founded and directed by Art & Antiques magazine—spotlights affordable yet established works from recognized as well as emerging artists. Proceeds from the Opening Night Gala ($95 per ticket), the first exclusive opportunity to view and purchase outstanding works of contemporary art will benefit the expansion of Phoenix Art Museum's sculpture garden, slated for completion in the spring.
Students from every corner of the world flock to Scottsdale to attend the Scottsdale Artists' School, a nonprofit organization devoted to the education of traditional fine art. The school offers more than 100 courses taught by professional artists from all over the United States and a variety of youth workshops.
An Exciting Selection of Scottsdale Galleries
The Scottsdale arts district, located primarily along Main Street (from Scottsdale Road to Goldwater Boulevard) and Marshall Way (from Indian School North to Fifth Avenue), is an area richly packed with more than 100 galleries offering an extensive spectrum of art and artists.
From art glass to landscape painting to basket weaving, Duley-Jones Gallery concentrates on eclecticism in artistry. Owners Kathy Duley and Randy Jones host a variety of artists in their 1,200-square-feet gallery showroom. From January 19 to 31, the gallery features the large Southwestern sky vistas with low horizons from David Rothermel's paintbrush.
Figarelli Fine Art features noted Southwestern sculptors such as Allan Houser, Phillip M. Haozous, Arlo Namingha, Anita Fields, Nora Naranjo-Morse and Tony Lee on a tree-shaded estate half a mile east of Scottsdale Road. Sharon Figarelli, owner, is the exclusive Arizona representative for the Allan Houser Estate. During his lifetime, Allan Houser (1914-1994) sculpted almost 1,000 works in bronze, wood and stone. The internationally acclaimed Warm Springs Chiricahua Apache had nearly 50 solo exhibitions in museums and galleries in the United States, Europe and Asia. From March 5 to May 5, the gallery hosts a special exhibition of Houser's three-dimensional creations.
Another gallery that excels in its genre is Overland Gallery of Fine Art. This serene showroom specializes in Russian Impressionist paintings dating from the 1930s through the early 1990s, depicting scenes from everyday life in 20th-century Russia. Lustrous works include colorful genre scenes, exquisite landscapes and sensitive portraits by such esteemed artists as Aleksei and Sergei Tkachev, Vladimir Stozharov, Valerian Formozov, Valentina Nechaeva, Nikolai Barchenkov, Peter Gorunov and Aleksandr Gulyaev, among others. Overland Gallery also hosts solo shows each February and March for renowned contemporary American realists Gary Ernest Smith, Ed Mell and Martin Grelle.
The Legacy Gallery represents more than 60 nationally recognized painters and sculptors in a wide array of subject matter, including Western art, figurative, wildlife art, still-lifes and landscapes. Owners Jinger and Brad Richardson offer works by deceased masters such as Albert Bierstadt, Frederic Remington and others. A realism artist with a contemporary flair, Ray Hare's beloved animal portraits are shown January 19. The gallery will host a draw show for Russian-trained impressionist artist Daniel F. Gerhartz on February 23. The Legacy Gallery's second annual Scottsdale Art Auction, held April 1 in the new 10,000-sguare-foot space above the gallery, offers works from 18th- and 20th- century Western masters.
The Contemporary Forum of Phoenix Art Museum presents a 10-day celebration of art in 2006 beginning with the Opening Night Gala (the launch party for ARTscottsdale, 6:30 to 9:30, March 23, $95) and culminating with the museum's renowned "Building A Collection" art auction and dinner (5:30 p.m., April 1, $200). "Building A Collection" is the largest fundraiser of Contemporary Forum and is dedicated to raising funds for the acquisition of contemporary art for the museum's collection. This culturally rich evening, held in the Cummings Great Hall at the museum, features cocktails, dinner and a live, silent auction of more than 60 works of art by local and national artists. Funds raised by Contemporary Forum's sponsorship of the Opening Night Gala for ARTscottsdale will aid in the purchase of a world-class sculpture for the Phoenix Art Museum's new sculpture courtyard, part of its current $41.2 million expansion project. To purchase tickets for the Opening Night Gala and "Building A Collection" art auction and dinner, call 602.307.2029 or visit contemporaryforum.com.
In the heart of Old Town Scottsdale and its art district is American Fine Art Editions Inc. Headlining its offerings for January is a major Warhol exhibition, with an opening reception on the 12th. "America's Fine Art Gallery" specializes in original work of 20th-century masters, such as Picasso, Miró, Botero, Chagall, Calder and many more. The gallery offers a range of fine art for every lifestyle, from original paintings and drawings to sculpture and serigraphs, as well as glass from international and American artists. Its team of international and American artists assists collectors of every level. And don't miss the new state-of-the-art glass studio next door to the 12,000-square-foot showroom: You can watch live glassblowing demonstrations and see this fiery process firsthand.
Scottsdale Events and Galleries
Area code 480, unless otherwise noted
American Fine Art Editions Inc.
3908 N. Scottsdale Rd.
800.466.8276
ARTscottsdale
770.955.5656, ext. 131
ARTscottsdale.net
Duley-Jones Gallery
7100 E. Main St.
945.8475
duleyjones.com
Figarelli Fine Art
7610 E. McDonald Dr., Ste. D
609.7077
figarellifineart.com
Overland Gallery of Fine Art
7155 E. Main St.
947.1934
overlandgallery.com
Phoenix Art Museum
1625 N. Central Ave., Phoenix
602.257.1880
phxart.com
Scottsdale Artists' School
3720 North Marshall Way
990.1422
scottsdaleartschool.org
Scottsdale ArtWalk
990.3939
scottsdalegalleries.com
Scottsdale Convention & Visitors Bureau
4343 N. Scottsdale Rd., Ste. 170
421.1004
scottsdalecvb.com
The Legacy Gallery
7178 E. Main St.
945.1113
legacygallery.com
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