The 41st annual Western Spirit Juried Art Show & Sale is highly anticipated, with it returning for an in-person showing at the Cheyenne Frontier Days Old West Museum. After a strictly virtual show last year due to Covid restrictions, many will now have the opportunity to see astounding Western contemporary works in the flesh and engage with the artists. 
Exterior of Cheyenne Frontier Days Old West Museum.
“We are planning to move forward with an in-person show this year, and a lot are excited to have it back,” says art show and events coordinator, Amanda Byzewski. “We expect to have good attendance just based on being back in-person, with some artists also in attendance. We feature artists from all over the country so some can’t make it but we’re encouraging as many to attend that are able.”
Approximately 137 of these esteemed artists will be featuring artworks in the show, chosen by an expert panel of jurors that includes Stephanie Hartshorn, a signature member of the American Impressionist Society and artist from the Cheyenne Frontier Days Western Art Show, and Mark Vinich, co-founder of Clay Paper Scissors Gallery & Studios. 
Matthew Atkinson, Sioux Chief, drawing, 20 x 20”
Jurors have selected 232 unique pieces in nine medium categories: acrylic, drawing, mixed media, oil, pastel, photography, printmaking, sculpture and watercolor. Ribbons will be awarded to artists in each category, along with Best of Show. “We allow the jurors to have total control over what’s picked for the show, but the pieces must be Western themed and we show contemporary works, while our summer show is reserved for more traditional art,” Byzewski says. Artists are contributing miniature pieces in addition to their show work, also available for sale, as part of the Vanderwark Miniature Show in the East Gallery of the museum. 
Bob Coonts, Proud, acrylic on canvas, 30 x24”
Works like Sioux Chief by Matthew Atkinson, a detailed black-and-white drawing of a Native American chief, are “ranked high with the jurors and are a good representation of the variety we get for this show,” explains Byzewski. Other pieces include an acrylic painting titled Proud by Bob Coonts, of a colorful rooster, and Kathryn Vinson’s stone sculpture, Prickly Pear Patch.
“I think [these pieces] show a variety of interpretations of what the West means to people,” says Byzewski. “We have landscape, figures and animals of the West all represented, as well as other subjects included.”
Kathryn Vinson, Prickly Pear Patch, stone: onyx, alabaster and limestone, 12 x 24 x 16”
The show will kick off with a ticketed opening reception on March 5, and those unable to attend can view the original works of art at the museum and online through April 17. The show also includes a Quick Finish event that allows artists to paint on site, and are given an arrow shaped canvas to complete their work. The public can view artists as they work and purchase pieces at an auction sale that follows, after all paintings are completed.
The morning of the show will also include a seminar and workshop that’s open to everyone, but is marketed specifically to artists. Jurors and specialists will speak on important art topics, and one seminar in particular will give advice on how to pack art.
Pieces will remain on view at the museum through April 17, with additional information and tickets for the opening reception available through the website. For those who wish to remain distanced, the show will also be streamed online. —
Western Spirit Art Show and Sale
March 5-April 17, 2022
Cheyenne Frontier Days Old West Museum, 4610 Carey Avenue, Cheyenne, WY 82001
(307) 778-7290, www.westernspiritartshow.org
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