Beyond Compare
Southwestern art sets itself apart.

By definition, Southwestern art is Western art. yet we can detect a distinction between the two that sets Southwestern art apart as a genre all its own. It's unique. To fully appreciate Southwestern art is to experience a consciousness-raising.

We're aware of ourselves as either a part of the Southwest or separate from it, aware of a region and a people that in some ways have no comparison.

If we consider what makes artwork Southwester, we're aware of color, light, and a vibrancy that emanates from the combination of these elements, regardless of its realism. Even the most abstract Southwestern pieces radiate the splendors of cultures older than the Americanized Europeans who settled the West.

Find the rest of this exciting article and more in the March/April 2005 issue of American Cowboy magazine...