Trailside Galleries, Tour de Force Exhibition, Western Art Collector, September 2017

INSIDE Jackson Hole Art Auction • Wildlife Art • Quest for the West • David Grossmann SEPTEMBER 2017

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UPCOMING GROUP SHOW Up to 36 works September 1-30, 2017

S HOW LO C AT ION JAC K S ON, W Y

Trailside Galleries 130 E. Broadway Jackson, WY 83001 (307) 733-3186

Tour de Force

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rtists and friends John DeMott, Alfredo Rodriguez and Mian Situ are the subject of a new three-artist show titled Tour de Force at Trailside Galleries’ location in Jackson, Wyoming.

In his most recent paintings, Rodriguez has concentrated on relationships. A Fanciful Voyage with Grandpa portrays a sea captain, reading a book to his grandchildren. “My

grandpa used to say, ‘A book is a journey of the imagination,’” Rodriguez says. “The book transports these children to adventure, and they are really interested in the stories their grandpa is telling them.”

His largest piece is Unaware, which depicts a mountain man oblivious to the danger that is in his presence. A pack of wolves has sensed him from their place in the bushes, while

Mian Situ, Leading the Herd, oil on canvas, 22 x 28”

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he looks the opposite way, gun inaccessible, unprepared for a possible confrontation.

Many of Situ’s paintings for Tour de Force depict the majestic beauty of Canyon de Chelly, located in northeastern Arizona. “My first trip was with some 20 artists camping four nights down the canyon. Since then I keep coming back for its irresistible beauty. The colors of its spectacular sheer red cliffs are so

Mian Situ, Riding in the Canyon, oil on canvas, 28 x 24�

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Alfredo Rodriguez, A Fanciful Voyage With Grandpa, oil on linen, 24 x 30”

Alfredo Rodriguez, Trading at Fort Robidoux, 1832, oil on linen, 24 x 48”

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Mian Situ, Canyon Shadows, oil on canvas, 20 x 26”

overwhelming,” Situ says. “The four days and nights I stayed there I experienced the dramatic change of climate and lighting in the canyon. With its history and people living there, the canyon is a great subject for painting.” The area, which is one of the longest continually inhabited landscapes in North America, provides much inspiration.

DeMott’s work will include the subject matter that has always inspired him: the American Frontier. “The saga of the American West, the fur trade, the Plains Indians, the cowboy, and the wildlife they encountered,” DeMott rattles off. “For the show I will touch a little on all these subjects, but mostly I seem to have focused on the fur trade. Not really planning that, I just seemed to gravitate to this subject and my reference material.

Very appropriate for Jackson Hole, Wyoming, with a lot of history there on the fur trade.”

One of DeMott’s recently completed pieces is The Mountain Men, which shows a group of trappers coming down from the high country. Another major piece is Texas Hold ‘Em, which depicts a group of cowboys playing the first-ever game of Texas Hold ’Em in Robstown, Texas, around 1900.

Tour de Force will be on view at Trailside Galleries’ Jackson location from September 1 through 30, with an open house reception on September 16 from 4 to 7 p.m. All three artists will be in attendance.

Fo r a d i re c t l i n k to t he ex h i b it i n g g a l l e r y g o to

John DeMott, Defiance, oil on canvas, 24 x 20”

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