It may not sound like much, but a lot of creativity can be finessed into 144 square inches. Everything from unique storytelling opportunities and chapters of history to moods and tones that evoke a time and a place—12 by 12 inches is not a barrier for the art or its potential.Brett Allen Johnson, After the Rain, oil, 12 x 12"

Opening July 10 at Maxwell Alexander Gallery in Los Angeles is the gallery’s annual Summer Small Works show, which features up to 100 works from some of the top Western painters working today. Most of the works included in the sale will be 12 by 12 inches or smaller. The pieces will be sold online through the gallery’s website on a first-come, first-served basis beginning July 10. Previous editions of this show—this year is the gallery’s ninth—have featured sell-out conditions with many works being scooped up in the opening minutes of the sale.Eric Bowman, Abiding Patient, oil, 12 x 12"

One of the artists contributing new work is Wyoming painter T. Allen Lawson, who will be offering Shell Creek Ice Shelf, showing a gentle snow scene on a creek. “I’ve always been fascinated with scenes like this, and every time I head out I never know what’s going to inspire me,” Lawson says. “For this one it was the opacity of the snow and ice, and the combination of the fluidity and reflections of the water and the light hitting it. I really loved how the abstract pattern along the edge of the creek created a little bit of warmth in the light coming through the willow bush and then reflected on the water.”John Moyers, Deep in the Quaking Forest, oil, 12 x 12"

Lawson, who takes meticulous field studies related to color, says he sits and absorbs the scene, though he rarely paints it the way a plein air painter would. “Just looking at it I can connect with the emotion of a place, and it stirs within me just by watching and taking it all in,” he adds. “From there I will take thumbnail sketches that are really quite crude, but then take more detailed color notes that will give me a foothold as I return to the studio later.”T. Allen Lawson, Shell Creek Ice Shelf, oil, 12 x 12"

One of the gallery’s rising stars is Brett Allen Johnson, who will be showing After the Rain, an image showing a cowboy. “After the Rain is a portrait of my friend Jordan Killpack. Mostly, it was just a fun chance to play with a dark and moody color palette,” the Utah painter says. “There’s a common visual theme in many Baroque portraits, setting the light skin of the sitter against a dark ground or vice versa.
I wanted to see how that could work out in the sagebrush basin.”David Grossmann, Crescent Moon and Early Flight, oil, 12 x 12"

Another top artist at Maxwell Alexander Gallery is Oregon painter Eric Bowman. He will be offering Abiding Patient, an image of a horse and rider in a moody desert scene. “Many of my paintings depict the reality of lonesome work in open country,” Bowman says. “Even when part of a team, the wilderness can sometimes set you apart and all you can do is wait; wait for your partner, wait for your boss, wait for your cattle to show up...In this ‘instant’ digital world of ours patience is a rare virtue, but good things often come to those who exercise it.”Kim Wiggins, Along the High Country, oil, 12 x 9"

Eric Merrell, Trailhead, oil, 9 x 12"

One of the more modern painters showing works at the show will be David Grossmann, whose works are a harmonization of color and texture, and speak to the abundant beauty of nature and wildlife. “[Crescent Moon and Early Flight] was inspired by an early morning when I looked out of my window and caught a glimpse of the crescent moon. It seemed fragile and somehow in keeping with the flocks of migrating birds that had been making their way through the valley where I live; both reminders of the changes and rhythms that surround us.

Other artists with works in the show include John Moyers, Scott Burdick, Joseph Lorusso, Natalie Featherston and many others. —

Upcoming Show
Up to 100 works
July 10-24, 2021
Maxwell Alexander Gallery
406 W. Pico Boulevard, Los Angeles, CA 90015
(213) 275-1060, www.maxwellalexandergallery.com

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