When my wife and I first began dating, one of the things we discovered we had in common was an appreciation for art. Young and unencumbered with children or debt, we spent time visiting art galleries and buying art that we both enjoyed. What my wife didn’t know at the time was how many art books – large, coffee-table sized collections – that I owned. I love art books.
And I loved this collection, Painted Sky.
It also so happens that I love the American Southwest – from the Rocky Mountains to the Mexican border, the desert country (both high and low) inspires art in a way unlike any other environment. So a collection of artists who paint in this environment regularly is bound to attract my attention.
Editor E. Ashley Rooney has assembled a large number of artists, offering to showcase just a few samples of the artists’ work and printing a half-page bio/commentary on the artist along with a photo of the artist him/herself. It is a very nicely put-together book. This gave me just enough on each artist that if I wanted to know more (and more often than not, I did), I would look them up online.
As with any multi-artist collection of this sort, there were artists whose work did not appeal to me but the majority of the work was, to me, excellent, with more than a handful that were truly outstanding.
One of the most unusual artists included was Edward Bateman. His manipulated photographs are tremendously eerie and delightful. Most artists featured are traditional oil, acrylic, and watercolor painters, but there are weavers and sculptors as well.
This book includes:
Foreward: Contemporary West: Myth, Truth, and What Lies Beneath by Rose Fredrick
Acknowledgements
Introduction
Artists:
Janel Acheson
Joseph Alleman
Caolyn Anderson
Edward Bateman
Andrew Beckham
Jim Beckner
Angela Beloian
Roland Bernier
Gregory Block
Karen Boylan
Doug Braithwaite
Carel P. Brest van Kempen
Lloyd Brown
George Bumann
Julie T. Chapman
Lorenzo Chavez
Kip Christensen
Matt Christie
Susan Cooper
Jerry Cornelia
Gayle Crites
Tim Deibler
Judith Dickinson
Elizabeth Dove
Joellyn Duesberry
Rick Dula
Dianne L. Massey Dunbar
Glen Lyman Edwards
Buff Elting
Mark England
Kim English
Norman Epp
Sharon Feder
Sushe Felix
Tracy Felix
Scott Fraser
Edward J. Fraughton
Lauren Gallaspy
Lindsey Bittner Graham
David Grossmann
Jean Grumpper
Ann Hanson
Stephanie Hartshorn
Patty Hawkins
Michael Haykin
Ron Hicks
Quang Ho
Tony Hochstetler
Shawn Huckins
Kate Hunt
Elizabeth Johnson
Kirsten Kainz
Ray Knaub
Beth Krensky
Darlis Lamb
Jill Lear
Kathy Bonnema Leslie
Emilio Lobito
Michael J. Lynch
Kim Mackey
Patrick Marold
Vanessa Martin
V. Kim Martinez
Mary McCauley
Peggy McGivern
Lewis McInnis
Lori McNee
Ainsley McNeely
Amy Metier
Jessica Mongeon
Shawna Moore
Jim Morgan
Christopher Owen Nelson
Tony Ortega
Do Palma
Arleta Pech
Mark Penner-Howell
Melody Randol
Mary Roberson
Rosetta
Dave Santillanes
Andrez Skorut
Jeff Slemons
Robin Cole Smith
theodore j. smith
Nathan Solano
Robert Spooner
Elsa Sroka
Bill Starke
William and Marilyn Stevens
Tracy Stuckey
Bern Sundell
Lexi Sundell
Kathy Thaden
Ken Valastro
Jacque Vaux
September Vhay
Mark Villarreal
Arin Waddell
Theodore Waddell
Kevin Weckbach
Jeff Wenzel
r. david wilson
Aaron Wuerker
Jenny Glenn Wuerker
Artists’ Sites
Galleries Showing The Artists’ Work
The last two portions of the book – the links to the artists’ websites and the galleries showing these works is an invaluable resource. In terms of commerce, the world is so small today, but it takes a book like this to help bring the awareness of the incredible artistic talents to light.
Looking for a good book? Painted Sky by E. Ashley Rooney is a fantastic collection of a wide range of artists from the Rocky Mountain area and should be enjoyed by art collectors and enthusiasts.
I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, through Edelweiss, in exchange for an honest review.
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Painted Sky: 106 Artists of the Rocky Mountain West
editor: E. Ashley Rooney
publisher: Schiffer Publishing
ISBN: 0764349619
hardcover, 224 pages
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