The city of Tehachapi, California, isn’t close to the coast, but what it may lack in oceanside views it makes up for in gorgeous desert and mountainous landscape scenery. Tehachapi has attracted countless Western artists, many who come visit the ranches that uplift the Western lifestyle in the region. The area is emboldened even more by the annual Art 2025 Tehachapi art show and event organized by the Tehachapi Arts Commission.
Derek Harrison, Above It All, oil on linen, 18 x 30 in.
Now in its fifth edition, the event brings together more than 50 artists who gather inspiration from the Tehachapi area for their show. “We encourage artists to paint the area,” says Dwight F. Dreyer, founder and CEO of the Tehachapi Arts Commission, who adds that the mission behind the event is to establish Tehachapi as a destination for representational fine art artists and collectors.
While many artists depict specific scenery from the Tehachapi landscape, some find inspiration from different elements of the city that lend to their desired subject matter.
Frank Serrano, Roaming the Vermillion Valley, oil, 24 x 24 in.
The featured artist this year is Derek Harrison, who is known for his figurative art in the Western genre. “I want to show the slightly more subtle side of ranch life in the West—the intimate moments that can be quiet and contemplative,” the artist says. “I love the dramatic but am more drawn to the introspective moments that express certain emotions.”
Harrison also shares that his show paintings feature people he has become very close with. “Ranchers who brought me deeper into this world, took me riding with them around their ranch and really helped to deepen my love and appreciation for this type of life,” he adds. “They are personal expressions of these beautiful moments and people that mean a lot to me.”
Attendees at the 2024 VIP opening enjoy artwork inspired by the Tehachapi, California, area. Courtesy of the Tehachapi Arts Commission.
We see this sense of connection and community in Harrison’s show painting Above it All, depicting a cowgirl alongside her horse. “This is a painting I did of my friend, cowgirl Kate Maddaloni,” Harrison explains. “The painting was based off a day we spent at her ranch in Arroyo Grande, California. Kate is very much a true cowgirl. A free spirit, independent thinker and extremely intuitive. She operates in a way where she’s seemingly ‘above it all.’ The type of girl that would leave town (as shown in the painting), ride up and over the hills and never look back. Always on the move with the sun at her back. This is a feeling I also get from Tehachapi. A town where the Old West still lives. I shot numerous reference photos with her out there, and numerous reference photos all around Tehachapi, as well as some plein air studies.”
Naomi Shachar, Steer Power, oil, 24 x 40 in.
Additional artists depicting ranch life and Western landscape scenery at the 2025 event include Frank Serrano, who presents his piece Roaming the Vermillion Valley, inspired by the artists painting trip to the Vermilion Cliffs in northeast Arizona; and Naomi Shachar featuring Steer Power, showing working cowboys on horseback, herding steer through a landscape of water-soaked grass.
To enjoy the full spectrum of Art 2025 Tehachapi, attend the ticketed VIP opening on Friday, November 14, when awards are announced, and visit the free public show on November 15. The event is hosted at the Aspen Builders Activity Center in Tehachapi. Head to the event website additional details. —
Art 2025 Tehachapi
November 14-15, 2025
Aspen Builders Activity Center
410 W. D Street, Tehachapi, CA 93561
(626) 945-3753, www.artstehachapi.org
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