Hall D in the Roundup Centre is comprised of two areas: a Sales Salon which consists of 30 booths manned by 50 artists and a Gallery area which has on display 200 western art pieces by emerging artists. A select committee juries all artists into the show.  All works are originals and encompass a variety of western themes expressed through various mediums from oils and watercolours to bronze sculpture.  Works range in price from $500 to $30,000. “The neat cache about this is people get to buy directly from the artist and chat with the artist,” says Cross.  “It creates a real buzz.”

The Western Art Show will also be hosting a live and silent art auction on July 13th.   “We really want to create a cultural oasis within the stampede,” says Cross. For more information on the Western Showcase, including biographies on the various artists and their works and for information on the auction, visit http://www.westernshowcase.com.

Another great place to find western themed art is at Webster Galleries on 11th Ave. SW in the design district. (http://www.webstergalleries.com)  “Landscape paintings of western Canada that have a lot of colour, abstraction and symbolism are very popular right now,” says John Webster. The Gallery represents a group of plein air painters called the New Seven -  they essentially work in an impressionistic style by capturing the essence of the landscape through light and juxtaposition of colour. The Gallery also represents several other western landscape artists including Jean Geddes and Jonathan Bowser who paints in a high realist style.

Carl Shinkaruk, also represented by Webster, paints portraiture of the people who live the western lifestyle from those who live the ranch life to those who work on the oil rigs. “His work represents the dichotomy between what is occurring on the land in Alberta now and the traditional ranching lifestyle of previous generations,” says Webster.

The gallery also carries bronzes by Don Toney and the alabaster and soap stone carvings of Graham Pettman, which depict and document the practical and spiritual lifestyle of the North American Indian.

Other places to look? Try Art Central on the corner of 7th Ave. and Centre Street South. It houses close to 60 galleries and studios. Take a walk through and you’ll find the gallery of Paul Van Ginkel. According to Fresco Fine Art Publications, he is one of the top 38 western themed artists working today. Van Ginkel’s work graces the walls of many corporations and private residences throughout North America. His imagery captures and documents western Canadian and western American historical themes. Visit http://www.paulvanginkel.com for more information.  NL