From Bohlin saddles to Navajo weavings, beat the tax-time blues with some soul-nourishing art therapy.
Through April 23
The Western Sights of Jo Mora
This overview of Uruguay-born artist Joseph Jacinto “Jo” Mora’s work ranges from his signature cartes and illustrations to watercolors and bronzes. The exhibition brings the early 20th-century American experience to life through detailed etchings, illustrated maps, paintings, sculptures, and stories. Western Folklife Center, Elko, Nevada, 775.738.7508, westernfolklife.org
Jo Mora, Grand Canyon, 1959, original colored version, Jo Mora Publications, 14” x 18”. Courtesy of the Joss Grandeau Collection
Through May 29
Saddles on Parade: The Artistry of Edward Bohlin
This exhibition celebrates the relationship of Fort Worth, Texas businessmen Sid Richardson and Amon Carter as well as the artistry of Edward Bohlin, who was the leading silversmith and saddlemaker during the golden years of Hollywood westerns. The collecting rivalry between Richardson and Carter is legendary, although, in truth, the two men had a close friendship with a constant exchange of gifts. The most extravagant was Carter’s 1947 gift to Richardson of a Bohlin black and silver parade saddle with matching gear. One of four saddles Carter commissioned for officials of the 1947 Southwestern Exposition and Livestock Show, it was in the exact design Bohlin had created for the king of Saudi Arabia. An additional saddle on view, also a gift from Carter, reportedly belonged to Bohlin’s wife. Sid Richardson Museum, Fort Worth, Texas, 817.332.6554, sidrichardsonmuseum.org
Sid Richardson, a director, (far right) on horseback with (left to right) Mayor Edgar Deen (Southwestern Exposition and Fat Stock Show manager), Ernest Allen (show vice president), W. R. Watt (show president); Fort Worth Star-Telegram; September 13, 1947; University of Texas at Arlington Libraries, Special Collections
Through May 29
The Art of Jean LaMarr
Spanning five decades of art and activism, this major retrospective of the work of Jean LaMarr (Northern Paiute, Achomawi) features more than 100 paintings, prints, and sculptures. It speaks to her prescient melding of postmodern eclecticism and Native American motifs and subject matter that affirms the dignity of Native American women, addresses the legacy of colonialism, and sounds a ringing “rejection of the idea of the vanished American Indian.” Nevada Museum of Art, Reno, Nevada, 775.329.3333, nevadaart.org
Jean LaMarr, Going Back to the Rez, 1974, oil on canvas, 36” x 49.5 ”. Collection of the Nevada Museum of Art, purchased with funds from deaccessioning© Jean LaMarr
Through May 31
As We Gather: Plants and Foods of Our Land
Through a variety of mediums — such as basket weaving, painting, and printmaking — five First American artists explore plants and foods that are important to them and how they relate to their individual cultures. Artists include Johnnie Lee Diacon (Muscogee/Creek), Rose Drake (Cherokee), Brent Greenwood (Chickasaw, Ponca), Norma Howard (Chickasaw, Choctaw), and Risi Thelander (Cherokee). Exhibit C Gallery, Oklahoma City, 405.767.8900, exhibitcgallery.com
Johnnie Lee Diacon (Muscogee), Ahocetv (To Farm), acrylic on stretched canvas, 20” x 16”. Courtesy of the artist
Through June 5
Frida Kahlo, Diego Rivera, and Mexican Modernism from the Jacques and Natasha Gelman Collection
Beloved artists Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera played a crucial role in defining and establishing the avant-garde cultural movement in Mexico in the early 20th century. This exhibition features many of Kahlo’s most famous self-portraits and rarely seen oil portraits by Rivera, as well as works by other icons of Mexican modernism. It travels to Philbrook Museum of Art in Tulsa, Oklahoma, July 6 – September 11. Portland Art Museum, Portland, Oregon, 503.226.2811, portlandartmuseum.org
Frida Kahlo, Diego on my Mind, 1943, oil on masonite, courtesy of the Jacques and Natasha Gelman Collection
Through June 12
Clearly Indigenous: Native Visions Reimagined in Glass
Breaking the boundaries of what is deemed traditional Indigenous art, this landmark exhibition examines how Native artists reinterpret cultural narratives and designs in new mediums. Featured are works by 29 Native American artists and four Pacific Rim artists, as well as seminal glass artist Dale Chihuly. Museum of Indian Arts & Culture, Santa Fe, 505.476.1269, miaclab.org
Preston Singletary collaboration, Untitled, 2017, blown and sand-carved glass, 32.5” x 5” x 5”. Photo credit: Russell Johnson
Through June 30
Sacred Dancers: Ceremonial Navajo Weavings
In the early 1900s, many Anglo tourists were fascinated with Native American religion. Encouraged by traders, Navajo weavers developed a new genre: ceremonial weaving. Because depicting yei (Navajo holy people) in permanent form was considered dangerous, they wove creative rugs that were most often artistic interpretations, rather than accurate replicas, of religious imagery. Featuring yei, yeibichei (maternal grandfather of the yei), and sandpainting textiles, this exhibit tells the story of weavers who boldly portrayed ceremonial imagery in their weavings. Tucson Desert Art Museum, Tucson, Arizona, 520.202.3888, tucsondart.org
Yei Be Chei Pictorial Storm Pattern Navajo Weaving; c. 1930s; hand-carded, hand-spun, and hand-dyed native wool; 63” x 108”. Courtesy Steve and Gail Getwiller collection, Nizhoni Ranch Gallery (Sonoita, Arizona)
April 2
Katsina Doll Marketplace: A Gathering of Carvers
Meet established and emerging carvers at the largest U.S. gathering of Hopi katsina doll carvers, where they show and sell their unique traditional and contemporary style creations. Enjoy musical performances, carving demonstrations, and a drawing for the 2022 featured katsina doll on the day of the event. Purchase tickets at the museum shop, or order them by calling 602.252.8344; you need not be present to win. Heard Museum, Phoenix, 602.252.8840, heard.org
April 7 – May 4
Neches River Festival Art Show
King Neches and his court will be on hand to kick off an exhibition and sale of a wide range of art including paintings, drawings, sculpture, photography, and more at a reception on April 7. Beaumont Art League, Beaumont, Texas, 409.347.6166, beaumontartleague.us
April 9 – July 31
Ansel Adams: The Masterworks & Clyde Butcher: America the Beautiful
Renowned photographers Ansel Adams and Clyde Butcher were both drawn by the beauty, grandeur, and complexity of American landscapes. These side-by-side exhibitions examine the power and fragility of nature. Adams’ exhibition includes 32 black-and-white gelatin silver prints, spanning four decades; it comprises some of Adams’ most well-known images. Butcher’s dramatic oversize photographs reveal wild and natural places where few human have ventured, capturing remarkable solitude and wonder. The James Museum of Western and Wildlife Art, St. Petersburg, Florida, 727.892.4200, thejamesmuseum.org
April 14
Gold Palette ArtWalk: Spring into Art
Focusing on “spring” artists, this celebration of the season through canvas, sculpture, and other works blooms with landscapes, florals, and modern works. Be sure to check out special gallery shows such as the one at the Wilde Meyer Gallery featuring artists including Andrea Peterson, Sarah Kathryn Bean, Brenda Bredvik, and more. Main Street north of 5th Avenue, Scottsdale, Arizona, scottsdalegalleries.com; wildemeyer.com
Stephen Morath, Zig Zag in Cactus Land, acrylic on canvas, 32” x 40”. Courtesy of the artist
April 22 – June 4
Fred Darge Paints the Big Bend and Beyond
German-born Dallas artist Fred Darge painted extensively throughout West Texas and New Mexico from the 1930s to 1960, capturing the area’s lifestyle and culture as well as its landscape. This exhibition — the first devoted to Darge in more than 60 years — features 43 paintings by the artist, including many of his best-known works. Darge biographers Bonnie and Robert McKee III are part of a free symposium on the artist and Western art, April 23. Museum of the Big Bend, Alpine, Texas, 432.837.8730, museumofthebigbend.com
Fred Darge, Stampede, 1940, oil on canvas, 30” x 36”. Collection of Susan and Jim Lockhart.