March 27-April 17, 2020 | Settlers West Galleries | Tucson, AZ

Jubilee Celebration

The Women Artists of the West holds its 50th Anniversary National Exhibition this March 27 to April 17.

The Women Artists of the West’s national juried show is celebrating half a century this year at Settlers West Galleries in Tucson, Arizona. The 50th National Exhibition Jubilee Celebration, which takes place from March 27 to April 17, is a massive special exhibition featuring more than 120 works of art from 120 women artists from across the United States, Canada and Australia.Dana Cook Lombardo, The Rush Gatherer, oil, 20 x 16”

Katherine Irish, A Moment in Albuquerque, pastel, 20½ x 35½”

Linda Mann, My Best Side, oil, 8 x 8”

All of the artists juried into the milestone exhibition are members of WAOW. Among those whose work will be featured in the exhibition are Barb Schacher, Linda Mann, Molly Moore, Tina Bohlman, Katherine Irish, Beverly Endsley, Sarah Kennedy, Elizabeth Lewis Scott, Pokey Park, Dana Cook Lombardo, Marla Epstein and Paula Holtzclaw.

“I am incredibly honored and excited to be included in this very special exhibition,” says watercolorist Margie Hildreth. Her painting Fiesta depicts a dancer in motion, her white dress creating energy within the piece. “I wanted to show the movement and pure joy of the folklorico dancer,” says the artist.Paula Holtzclaw, Creekside Oaks, oil on linen panel, 30 x 24”

Barb Schacher, Moment of Silence, pastel, 18 x 24”

Elizabeth Lewis Scott, Smarty Pants, oil, 12 x 9”

Margie Hildreth, Fiesta, watercolor, 10 x 8”

WAOW president Mary Ann Cherry brings to the show an oil titled Desert Bighorns, in which a small group of bighorn sheep meander down a mountain. The three sheep in the background stare directly at the viewer. “Our Jubilee 50th Anniversary is a special WAOW milestone that will come around only once in a lifetime. As a Master member, I am thrilled to have an invited piece in the show, a skinny vertical oil of desert bighorns,” says Cherry. “I am even more excited to have a large Native American oil painting accepted as one of only 15 or so tightly juried jumbo paintings that will be mixed in with more than 100 regular-sized paintings and sculptures in the exhibition,” she says.“I have learned a lot as part of this group of wonderful, generous and professional women…As the current president, the primary thing brought home to me is that it takes a virtual village to make these big shows happen, and WAOW has many dedicated capable women that fill that niche.”

Marla Epstein, Summer’s End, oil on linen canvas, 36 x 24”

Beverly Endsley, We Have A Weaner!, oil, 11 x 14”

Mary Ann Cherry, Desert Bighorns, oil, 33 x 14½”

Sharon Markwardt’s oil on wood panel Eye on the Prize is a colorful affair—a white jackrabbit rendered in shadows and highlights of pinks, blues and purples, is set against a background of green cacti sprouting vivid pink fruit. “The jackrabbit in my piece might be an oil painting of an Arizona native, but the show will reflect a diverse range of subjects and styles by talented artists from across our beautiful nation,” says Markwardt. “This is a phenomenal group that interacts supportively to bring the best of art by women into public view. I can’t wait to see the show myself!” —

Molly Moore, Primal Force, pastel, 16 x 20”