Get out and about and arted-up this spring.
Through March 27
Incomparable Impressionism from the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston
For the first time, some 100 of the most significant impressionist paintings and works on paper are leaving their Boston home for their only U.S. stop. The exhibition brings together paintings from the 19th and early 20th century by such artists as Claude Monet, Camille Pissarro, Mary Cassatt, Edgar Degas, Edouard Manet, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, and others. Museum of Fine Arts Houston, Houston, 713.639.7300, mfah.org
Pierre-Auguste Renoir; Dance at Bougival; 1883; oil on canvas; 71.73” x 38.73”; Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, Picture Fund. © Museum of Fine Arts, Boston / All Rights Reserved
Through April 22
Art of Illusion: Photography and Perceptual Play
This exhibition will challenge your understanding of the saying “seeing is believing.” Using a range of technical and conceptual approaches, and working almost exclusively without darkroom manipulation or digital editing software, 25 artists created works that highlight the complex relationship between reality, visual perception, and camera vision. The majority of the 50 works date from the early 1970s, including many recent acquisitions on view for the first time. The Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, Kansas City, Missouri, 816.751.1278, nelson-atkins.org
Kenneth Josephson, Michigan, 1981, gelatin silver print, 7.875” x 12”. Gift of Hallmark Cards, Inc.
Through May 1
Faces From the Interior: The North American Portraits of Karl Bodmer
When naturalist-explorer Prince Alexander Philipp Maximilian (1782 – 1867), of Neuwied, Prussia (now in Germany), led one of the earliest expeditions to the American West to record the natural history of the region, he took with him Swiss-born artist Karl Bodmer to document their findings. This exhibition at the Joslyn Art Museum — its first focusing on Bodmer’s watercolor portraits of Native Americans — features more than 60 recently conserved paintings from the museum’s collection, including portraits of individuals from Omaha, Yankton, Lakota, Mandan, Hidatsa, Assiniboine, and Blackfoot tribes, among many Native communities encountered by during the Maximilian-Bodmer North American expedition. Joslyn Art Museum, Omaha, Nebraska, 402.342.3300, joslyn.org
Karl Bodmer, Chan-Chä-Uiá-Te-Üinn, Lakota Sioux Woman, 1833, watercolor and graphite on paper, 17.125” x 11.875”. Gift of the Enron Art Foundation. Photo credit: © Bruce M. White
Through May 1
Western Wares
The West has always inspired people — in art, in song, and in design. This exhibition shows how designs with roots on the range have influenced clothing, furniture, tableware, and more. Through the exhibition’s interactive activities, you’ll find out why we drive Broncos and Indian motorcycles and why country singers wear rhinestones on Western-cut suits, among other interesting facts about the wide-ranging influence of the West. National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum, Oklahoma City, 405.478.2250, nationalcowboymuseum.org
Navajo Indian Blanket Weaver. T. Co., circa 1940, photographic postcard. Photographic Study Collection, Dickinson Research Center, National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum. 2003.186.
Through August 27
Enlarging the View: Contemporary Photography & Connections
This exhibition of 90-plus works of art pairs contemporary photographs with historic artworks from the museum’s collections, including many on exhibit for the first time. It offers images by a group of fine art photographers working in a range of styles and approaches, as well as artworks from renowned artists such as John James Audubon, O.E. Berninghaus, Georgia O’Keeffe, and Charlie Russell. Stark Museum of Art, Orange, Texas, 409.886.2787, starkmuseum.org
March 1 – 31
Art Detour 34
Now in its 34th year, Phoenix’s original art-walk event now spans the entire month of March. This all-inclusive celebration of art, creativity, and culture features events and exhibitions throughout the state. Highlights include the Art d’Core Gala on March 11, On Central Fashion + Art, Downtown Chamber Series, Creative City Symposium, and other arts and culture activities. Various venues, Arizona, artdetour.com
March 3
Gold Palette ArtWalk: Native Spirit
This walk pays homage to Native American artists and their history and culture in Scottsdale, with Indigenous art and other authentic displays, live entertainment, and traditional food. Main Street and Marshall Way, Scottsdale, Arizona, scottsdalegalleries.com
March 5 – 6
Heard Museum Guild Indian Fair & Market
Now in its 64th year, Arizona’s largest American Indian art fair features more than 600 of the nation’s top Native artists. Meet jewelers, potters, katsina-doll carvers, basket makers, bead workers, painters, sculptors, and weavers as you view and shop for authentic handmade treasures. Heard Museum, Phoenix, 602.252.8840, heard.org
March 5 – April 17
Western Spirit Art Show and Sale
In this annual juried art show and sale, 230 pieces of premier Western art from 136 artists hang in the historic Carriage Hall. The opening reception on March 5 includes the Vandeward Miniature Art exhibit and a quick draw. Cheyenne Frontier Days Old West Museum, Cheyenne, Wyoming, 307.778.7289, oldwestmuseum.org
Bob Coonts, Proud, acrylic on canvas, 30” x 24” x .50”
March 7 – April 3
Borrego Plein Air Invitational
Fourteen artists — working in oil, watercolor, and pastel — fan out across the Borrego Springs area for six days to capture the beauty of its desert landscape, flora, and fauna. Artworks hang in the Borrego Art Institute Gallery through April 3. Borrego Springs, California, 760.767.5152, borregoartinstitute.org
March 10 – 12
Breaking Through: The Rise of American Women Artists
As the sixth museum exhibition in the American Women Artists’ (AWA) 25 in 25 campaign, this juried show and sale features 125 representational and abstract works, including paintings, drawings, and sculptures. It is on view in person and online March 5 – May 29. Customs House Museum & Cultural Center, Clarksville, Tennessee, 931.648.5780, customshousemuseum.org
Mary Ann Cherry, American Boy, oil on panel, 30” x 30”
March 16 – 20
Western Art Week
The weeklong event celebrating hometown artist Charlie Russell’s birthday returns this year with more than 600 artists and 16 art shows. Activities include the March in Montana auction, Out West Show, Great Western Show, Jay Contway Art Show, two new shows by The Russell as well as their March Sealed Bid Sale, Legends West, and more. Various venues, Great Falls, Montana, westernartweek.com
March 25 – 26
Night of Artists at the Briscoe
One of the Western art world’s premier events, this annual exhibition and sale features nearly 300 new works of art by more than 75 of today’s leading contemporary Western artists. Opening weekend activities include a collectors summit panel discussion, preview dinner, and live auction on Friday; an exhibition preview, second collectors summit, and awards luncheon precede the exhibition opening, reception, and luck-of-the-draw sale on Saturday. The public exhibition runs March 27 through May 8. Briscoe Western Art Museum, San Antonio, 210.299.4499, briscoemuseum.org
Mikel Donahue, Catch Hand, 2021, acrylic on board, 22” x 30”
March 25 – September 4
Cowgirl Up! Art From the Other Half of the West
Each year the brightest contemporary female artists working in the Western genre are invited to participate in this popular exhibition and sale. This time around, more than 60 women fine artists are presenting paintings, drawings, and sculpture that depict the Western lifestyle. Special opening-weekend ticketed activities include a miniatures sale, “bash & bid” sale, and quick draw. The exhibit is on view through September 4. Desert Caballeros Western Museum, Wickenburg, Arizona, 928.684.2272, westernmuseum.org
Naomi Brown, Moon Rising over Joshua, oil and acrylic on gallery-wrapped canvas, 30” x 48”
Photography: All images courtesy the artist and/or museum
Cover image: Alfredo Rodriguez, A Message From The Past, 2021, oil on linen, 24” x 36”