Sculptural delights
Bronze group show
For more than 30 years, Mountain Trails Gallery in Sedona, Arizona, has been recognized as a destination for sculpture and celebrates the three-dimensional medium with an annual exhibition dedicated to the art form. The 2019 exhibition will happen November 1 through 30, with art by Bryce Pettit, Deborah Copenhaver Fellows, Susan Kliewer, Curt Mattson and Raymond
Gibby being among the featured works.
“In addition to a curated selection of outstanding work by [the exhibiting] artists, this year, in homage to special requests by our treasured collectors, we are featuring a group of small works by these amazing artists,” says gallery director Julie Williams. “The powerful presence of each bronze stands tall no matter the size.”
Copenhaver Fellows’ bronze She’s a Little Wet Behind the Ears depicts a young horse scratching at its ear with one of its hind legs. “Today we recognize youth and inexperience as being novice,” the artist explains. “This little filly fits the bill. Even scratching is difficult. My grandpa would say, ‘She’s a little wet behind the ears.’”
Pettit’s piece Hit Parade was from a series
of sculptures based on totem animals. “The animals were sculpted based on what each animal represents instead of being set in their environment or a typical vignette type sculpture,” he says. “The five animals in Hit Parade are representative of the Rocky Mountain region. Additionally, as with much of my work, I use the animals as a way to tell my personal story; each one representing aspects of my experience as an artist.”
Also available in the show is Mattson’s lifesize bronze New Friend depicting a 5-weekold donkey named Chloe. As the gallery explains, she was rescued when she was 2 weeks old after a serious injury. As a symbol of hope, Mattson added a butterfly perched on the animal.
The Annual Sculpture Show will kick off November 1 with a reception from 5 to 8 p.m.