Redefining, challenging and expanding the visual language of the American West is the all-female exhibition Unbridled, hosted at the A.R. Mitchell Museum of Western Art. Executive director Allyson Sheumaker notes that the title of the exhibition stems from the spirit of freedom, independence and unrestrained creativity.
Sara Bloodwolf, Thunder Peak Woman, oil on canvas, 30 x 24 in.
“Through painting, sculpture and mixed media, the exhibition explores identity, landscape, culture and lived experience, offering a nuanced and powerful counterpoint to historically male-dominated narratives of the West,” Sheumaker says, adding that the voices included in Unbridled reflect the vitality and complexity of women’s contributions to Western art.
Attendees will find “voices” from featured artists like Maura Allen, Maia Chavez Larkin, Peggy Judy, Reen Axtell, April Luikart and Jennifer Cunningham, among others within the the grouping of 63 participating artists.
Glenda Cairns-Poirier, Mod Mule, acrylic on canvas, 16 x 20 in.
“We wanted to host a show that did not put any limits on the female artists,” says Sheumaker, “and wanted them to have total control over what was submitted for this show. No holds barred—a total female perspective of the West.”
One of the works in the show is Sara Bloodwolf’s painting Thunder Peak Woman,a portrait of a Native American woman that blends into the background. “I am known for showing how the patterns of our surroundings wrap around and through us—the eternal intertwining of land and spirit,” Bloodwolf shares. “Bodies composed of the very environment, the earth, water and sky; clothing figures who embody the landscape. These are devotional paintings to the land itself.”
Reen Axtell, That’s What I Do, acrylic and mixed media on cradled board, 30 x 24 in.
For this piece, Bloodwolf says that inspiration was found during a solo camping trip around the Colorado Rockies’ Thunder Peak, also known as Hallett Peak. “I wanted to paint a vision of the spirit of a place,” she says. “I show a figure whose shoulders are formed from the mountain tops, the sky dipping through the peaks creating her collar. Elk teeth decorating her dress mirror the snow drifts dappling the mountainside where she holds an evergreen branch symbolizing eternity. Her blanket warmly wrapped around her mirrors the twin peaks behind, where rivulets of snow form the folds of her sleeves. The landscape creates her.”
Jani Freimann, Still Waters, acrylic, 16 x 20 in.
For Glenda Cairns-Poirier, her subject matter is mostly horses, cattle and wildlife within landscapes. For her piece Mod Mule, she explains, “I photographed this mule and rider in a parade in Armstrong, British Columbia, about 30 years ago. I was attracted to the striding motion of the mule and the communication between the mule and rider. This seemed to indicate a partnership based on mutual trust. The circles in the background were created to direct the viewer’s focus on the beauty of this partnership between a person and his steady companion. I tend to use acrylic paint when working in a more graphic style, such as in this painting.”
To view the entirety of Unbridled: Women’s Western Exhibition, featuring 107 pieces, head to the A.R. Mitchell Museum of Western Art in Trinidad, Colorado. An opening reception will be held the opening day, August 7, when the public can meet participating artists and experience the exhibition firsthand. —
Unbridled: Women’s Western Exhibition
August 7-September 19, 2026
A.R. Mitchell Museum of Western Art
150 E. Main Street Trinidad, CO 81082
(719) 846-4224
www.armitchellmuseum.com
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