August 5-29, 2022 | Manitou Galleries | Santa Fe, NM

Statements and Stories

Manitou hosts two shows throughout the month of August for renowned artists JD Challenger and B.C. Nowlin.

The month of August is a busy one for Manitou Galleries in Santa Fe, New Mexico, as the ever-popular Indian Market descends upon the town for four days, bringing people from far and wide to enjoy art, events and festivities. Manitou joins in all the fun beginning August 5 with Statements, a show of new paintings by BC Nowlin, who uses Western imagery to depict what he describes as “the journey of mankind.” Opening August 18, the gallery will also host JD Challenger’s new Native American portrait paintings in Stories of the Ancestors—a show to inspire and educate viewers on the Indigenous peoples of North America. JD Challenger, Stories of the Ancestors, mixed media on Masonite, 30 x 30”

Nowlin’s show, displayed through August 15, will be a continuation of his renowned, colorful style that often combines a landscape setting with figures walking toward a horizon with backs to the viewer. “Even though I’m using what people call ‘Western imagery,’” Nowlin explains, “I’m still thinking about the whole world—people on horseback or on foot among fabulous landscapes or cars disappearing into the distance. It’s all about people, out there, moving, because we all are. This is our universal journey. We’re all tribal people and this is as much your story as it is mine. It’s high concept Western art.”BC Nowlin, Have, oil, 42 x 48”

Some of Nowlin’s newer images for the show include depictions of massive canyons with huge streaks of color, and people shown journeying through the canyon, as seen in Milestone. “Who are these people? I have no idea!” Nowlin proclaims. “I want to paint these people because it’s a fabulous thing for me to imagine. I don’t tell people specifics about my pieces because I don’t even know. It’s not about me; it’s about life and they’re invited in through imagination.”

Nowlin is also known for incorporating his figures walking toward what he calls a “shimmery, wonderful sort of light.” Milestone includes this refreshingly optimistic element—something we need more now than ever.

For Challenger’s show, hanging at Manitou through August 29, viewers will witness more deeply meaningful and even awareness raising masterpieces—of which this seasoned artist is known. Having grown up among Native people, the artist feels a responsibility of sorts to depict Native culture and history with complete accuracy. “I’m not Native,” he says, “but to be part of their world is a blessing. Each piece [I create] has a message or story that comes from Native Americans.”BC Nowlin, Milestone, oil, 48 x 36”

In painting Stories of Ancestors, taken for the name of the show, Challenger features a male Native figure in full regalia, against a background of petroglyphs. The piece seemingly speaks for the new show collection as whole, as it refers to Native storytelling and history. “Since most ancient ones of the North American continent did not have a written language, almost all of it was passed down through the spoken word of each area,” says Challenger. “Eventually, some of the Native peoples developed methods of keeping their stories through drawings which were painted on hides with stain made from plants, etc. These are referred to as ‘ledger drawings…’ In the Southwest, many of us are familiar with the method of story keeping found carved into the cliffs and rocks of the area. These are referred to as petroglyphs.”JD Challenger, What About Us, mixed media on Masonite, 36 x 36”He continues, “All of these images are forms of storytelling and means of keeping the history of the people alive.” This is reflected in additional show works like What About Us?, Lightening Strikes Twice and Thunderbolt.