Clap along with us: The stars at night are big and bright / Deep in the heart of Texas. 

Celebrate those Texas nights with Night of Artists, the Briscoe Western Art Museum’s exhibition and sale that offers work of art from some of the best Western artists working today. The annual event kicks off March 27 in San Antonio, Texas. The Briscoe Western Art Museum in San Antonio, Texas.

The view of the Briscoe Western Art Museum from the San Antonio River Walk.This year’s show will include more than 80 artists offering nearly 300 works of art. Artists include Martin Grelle, George Hallmark, Z.S. Liang, Mark Maggiori, Jan Mapes, Stefan Savides, Billy Schenck, Michael Ome Untiedt and Kim Wiggins, as well as many others. New artists at this year’s show are William Alther, Bruce Cheever, Todd Connor, William Haskell, Oreland Joe, Walter Matia, Mark McKenna, Paul Moore, Chad Poppleton, Jason Rich, Mian Situ and Ezra Tucker. Mark Maggiori, Father’s Daughter, oil, 38 x 38”

“We’re feeling very good about this year’s show, including the great roster of artists who will be showing new work here at the museum,” says Michael Duchemin, the Briscoe’s president and CEO. “Each year we try to present the very best Western art that is out there. And it’s fun because outside visitors get to experience San Antonio, which is establishing itself as one of the important stops on the Western art circuit. Certainly there is Scottsdale, Santa Fe and Jackson Hole—and now add into that San Antonio. We have more Western art collectors in Texas than anywhere else.”Kim Wiggins, Flowing With Milk & Honey, oil, 36 x 48”

Duchemin added that the museum was proud of the women artists at this year’s show. “When you look at our roster, more than 21 percent of the artists are women, when most shows are closer to 10 percent,” he says. “We want to do everything we can to promote women artists. One way we do that is to talk about them as artists first, with their distinction being female always coming secondary. We like to refer back to something Georgia O’Keeffe said: ‘The men liked to put me down as the best woman painter. I think I’m one of the best painters.’”  Teresa Elliott, Canyon Thunder, oil on canvas, 20 x 16”

George Hallmark, Dia de Los Angeles (Day of the Angels), oil on linen, 40 x 36”

One of the artists Duchemin wants to highlight at this year’s show is Teresa Elliott, the Texas-based artist who frequently paints longhorn cattle, “but with a contemporary twist,” the museum president says. “She comes up with some compelling compositions, and her use of color is fantastic—the blues she uses for her sky are mesmerizing,” he says. “Our eyes can see tens of millions of colors, and the best artists try really hard to make sure they are using unique colors. You can see that in Teresa’s work.”

The show, now in its 19th year, kicks off on March 27 with the two-day Briscoe Bison Society Collectors Summit, which will feature a series of panel discussions and conversations that explore the Western art market and trends. The summit will take place at the nearby Westin Riverwalk and is intended for all collectors, from novice to veteran Western art fans. Panels include “Headin’ In,” which will explore the changing nature of the Western art market as it relates to longtime collectors who are perhaps reaching their zenith. Moderated by Western Art Collector editor Joshua Rose, the panel will feature Hallmark, Basha Collection director Tammy Fontaine and Trailside Galleries’ managing partner Maryvonne Leshe. Jason Rich, Spirited, oil, 32 x 32”

William Haskell, New Mexico Modern, acrylic on panel, 14 x 18”

The second panel, held on March 28 and titled “Headin’ Out,” will examine the role of novice buyers of Western art as they make the transition from buyers to collectors. Panelists include Maggiori, Hindman director Katherine Hlavin and Beau Alexander, gallery director at Maxwell Alexander Gallery.

“The second panel will be fun because we bring in the new collectors. Maybe they’re discovering Western art for the first time, or maybe they’ve just bought a piece or two,” Duchemin says. “Young people start out as decorators and they don’t always know what they’re doing. Maybe they’re just filling a hole above a fireplace, but then they start buying art and they come back again and again, and now they’re collectors.”Xiang Zhang, Headin South, oil on linen, 45 x 28”

Additional events include the exhibition preview, dinner and live auction of around 30 works on March 27, followed on March 28 by the Grand Exhibition Opening, Art Sale and Reception, which will include the fixed-price, by-draw sale, as well as live music with food and drinks. 

For Duchemin, Night of Artists is a highlight of his year because it is not only a great Western art show, but it’s a great union of traditional Western art and contemporary Western art. “It’s both of those categories together that makes our show special,” he says. —

Night of Artists
March 27-May 4, 2020
Briscoe Western Art Museum,
210 W. Market Street, San Antonio, TX 78205
(210) 299-4499, www.briscoemuseum.org

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