New Year, New Art
Thursday 1.13.2011 @ 6:49pm | ImagesAZ | Art
Writer Donna Kublin
Strolling among talented artists in Cave Creek and Carefree at outdoor fine arts festivals is one of my favorite things to do. It is not only a chance to meet artists, but it is also a feast for the eyes and other senses as live entertainment, food, and gorgeous settings are all part of the experience.
Two long-standing festivals of note that are held in January and February include nationally-acclaimed, juried fine artists that attract collectors from across the United States and other countries. For many visitors to Arizona, the festivals are the highlight of their trip, and for local collectors, they provide a chance to see the latest work of their favorite artists. The festivals offer a wide variety of media, styles, sizes, subject matter, and price range, to ensure there is something that will appeal to everyone who attends.
Starting off 2011 in style, the 18th Annual Carefree Art and Wine Festival will be held January 14, 15 and 16. Imagine the streets of downtown Carefree being closed, making room for more than one hundred and sixty artists and in excess of five thousand original masterpieces of fine art. I am always impressed to see artists’ works from small to monumental life-sized bronze sculptures, metal, clay, wood, stone, glass, and mixed media. The typical show also includes an array of pottery, photography, hand-crafted jewelry, batiks, and select fine crafts and spectacular oil and acrylic paintings on canvas, watercolors, pastel, charcoal - all with a variety of subject matter.
There is something special about sipping a glass of wine while leisurely walking around the displays. The Carefree Art and Wine Festival holds the title of Arizona’s largest wine-tasting event, featuring first-class wines from Arizona, California, Australia, Germany, Austria, France and Italy. This year, live music of Moodafaruka will add to the experience with an enchanting mix of Flamenco, Middle Eastern, Spanish, and Western motifs. What’s not to like!
Another favorite of mine is being held on February 18, 19, and 20 at Stagecoach Village in Cave Creek. The Sonoran Arts League (SAL) will host the prestigious 10th Annual Festival of Fine Art - a showcase of art forms and styles from contemporary to western that will please casual and serious collectors. Surrounded by gorgeous mountain views, Stagecoach Village, with its western-themed edifices, will accommodate one hundred local and nationally-acclaimed painters, sculptors, jewelers, photographers, as well as wood, glass, and mixed media artists.
This year features local restaurant vendors, musical entertainment, demonstrations and exhibits, plus SAL members who will manage the “Brush With Art” booth where families express their creativity. The Festival presents Sonoran Arts League artists, along with other renowned artists from around the state and across the country. This juried art show is one of the very few art shows in Arizona that is coordinated by artists.
Mesa artist, Raleigh Kinney, is an exceptional watercolorist that will be exhibiting at both festivals. His artwork accompanies this article. “I have exhibited at the Carefree show since its inception eighteen years ago, and the SAL Festival of Fine Art at various times depending on my schedule,” said Kinney. “I enjoy meeting new people and reconnecting with my collectors as well.”
Kinney’s watercolors have a natural distinctive style that is a larger-than-life look, beyond the subject combination of color and form. It has won the acclaim of countless watercolor and art devotees and he has enjoyed a highly-regarded reputation from his peers through continued acceptance in major shows and competitions. His Plein Air painting of Catalina Island, “When Evening Shadows Fall,” was selected for the November 2000 prestigious “Plein Air Painters of America” show on Catalina Island, sponsored by the Society for the advancement of Plein Air Painting. He recently won the 2010 Grand Trail Award for his “Smoke on the Trail” (see painting above) and the M&I Donor Choice Award at the Sedona Plein Air Festival this past October. His work can be also viewed online at www.kinneywatercolors.com.
While not a festival, per se, there is another event that has a festive vibe that I really enjoy. The Arizona Fine Art EXPO, which runs from January 20 to April 3, unites an impressive gathering of one hundred nationally-celebrated and award-winning artists that passionately produce art “in studios.” They do this is by constructing a temporary acre-sized covered structure. Inside, artists will be seen painting in all media, sketching in pen and ink, pastels and pencil, assembling mosaics, sculpting clay, carving wood, composing mixed media on canvas, welding, and designing and sculpting jewelry. Outside, artists will be working in outdoor cabanas carving alabaster, etching stone, welding metal, steel, and copper, patina finishing, glass fusing and more.
There will also be a quaint Café de Expo that offers scrumptious breakfast, snacks, and lunch in the afternoon. Weekends will come alive with the sounds of live musical entertainment and there will also be art classes, workshops, book-signing events, wine tasting, chef demonstrations and more.
I am looking forward to attending the festivals and EXPO this year to enjoy the art, the artists, the ambience, and the appetizing aromas. I might even find the perfect gift or the ideal addition to my home and in the process make some new artist friends.
Carefree Art and
Wine Festival
January 14, 15, 16
10:00AM to 5:00PM
Downtown Carefree
Admission $3
480.837.5637
10th Annual Festival
of Fine Art
February 18, 19, 20
10:00AM to 5:00PM
Stagecoach Village
7100 E. Cave Creek Road, Cave Creek
Admission is Free
480.575.6624
Arizona Fine Art EXPO
January 20 to April 3
10:00AM to 6:00PM daily
26540 N. Scottsdale Rd., Scottsdale
Admission: Season pass is $8 and
$7 for seniors and military.
Children under 12 are free.
480.837.5637
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