Mountain Trails Gallery will present their Spring Season exhibition “Across the West: Details and Impressions” starting First Friday, March 4.

According to a news release, the exhibit features artists who are passionate about their love of the West as they capture that exuberance in their landscapes, still lifes, wildlife, historic stories, and characters in their art that have given them recognition both for their subject matter as well as their style. The gallery continues to exhibit the fine art of award-winning artists who work in a variety of styles including realism, impressionism, expressionism, as well as contemporary styles of their own creation. No matter the way of conveying the meaning of an experience, the gallery is shining a spotlight on those artists who are in touch with the joy of beauty in their paintings, sculpture, and mixed media art.

A reception for the March exhibition takes place on First Friday, March 4, from 4–7 p.m. at the gallery’s location in the Village of Tlaquepaque in Sedona.

The gallery is proud to introduce the fascinating work of New Mexico/Texas artist Tamara Rymer who honors her love of the West with what she calls her “journal in art” paintings that speak to her family stories about the Old West as well as their Native American ancestry. Tamara takes the viewer on a journey inspired by her own experiences that began with a whisper about the cowboys and traders, travelers and outlaws, horses and Native Americans who crisscrossed the ranch owned by her great-grandparents.

Her dreamscape atmospheres seem to suggest untold decades of historical details, as the paintings call forth the significance of place with a pentimento-like quality of a story underneath the soft desert colors of the landscapes and structures, and yet the paintings leave a simplistic vision as a peaceful contemplation, allowing for the viewer to wonder and decide.

Artists in the exhibition who have mastered the various techniques of realism stand out in the paintings of Sue Krzyston, Lisa Danielle and Vicki Catapano. By getting to know more about the people with their proud sense of identity that is often expressed through their handmade objects, and in some cases, by getting to know the people themselves, these artists continue to celebrate the innate and arresting beauty in each of their subjects.

The passion and love for the American West was instilled at a very young age in the lives of realist sculptors Susan Kliewer, Deborah Copenhaver Fellows, Dustin Payne, Vic Payne, Michael Trcic, and Gary Lee Price who were brought up with hands-on experience of the work ethic and proud family moments that left more than an impression.

Also, the delight of detailed wildlife realism is outstanding in the sculpture of Raymond Gibby and Bryce Pettit who see human nature and often charm in their wildlife stories, whether it is through basic or transcendent behaviors. The stand-alone paintings, drawings, and sculpture of Pedro Ramos, whose roots in Spain found their way to Arizona, tell the stories of indigenous cultures with a style so akin to the realists of the Renaissance that this artist stands apart in his respect for beauty.

The gallery also celebrates those intriguing artists who walk their own line between realism, expressionism, and their own contemporary style including landscape painters Michelle Condrat, Gregory Stocks, and Marcia Molnar, as well as wildlife sculptors Jeremy Bradshaw and Mark Edward Adams whose works all continue to attract attention from collectors and art lovers.

Also, the tongue-in-cheek realism and allegorical reference points bring a smile in the paintings of wildlife artists Jennifer O’Cualain and Barbara Rudolph. Their juxtapositions of objects and storytelling theater of colorful birds and other animals often give clues as to their point of view, often told through a sense of humor.

The “Across the West” exhibition continues through March. Mountain Trails Gallery Sedona is in Tlaquepaque Arts and Crafts Village, upstairs overlooking the Patio de las Campanas and can be contacted for more information at 928-282-3225, fineart@mountaintrailssedona.com, MountainTrailsSedona.com, Instagram at #mountaintrailssedona, Facebook @MTGSedona.

Information provided by MTG Sedona.