Depth Perception

“For years I have experimented with the medium of acrylics, and have developed many techniques to achieve a look in my work that is not only new and different, but stylish and bold. I have always been inspired by the landscape surrounding me, and it seems always to be influential in my thought process.“ –Christopher Nelson

Waxlander Gallery & Sculpture Garden is happy to welcome groundbreaking landscape artist Christopher Nelson to our gallery!

In a short period of time, Nelson has established himself as one of the top young talents to emerge from the vibrant Denver art community. Throughout his already accomplished career, Nelson has been at the forefront of pioneering new and different ways of expressing and creating through art. His talent was recognized at an early age, so much so that his third grade teacher bought several of his sketches. As a teenager, while still being self-taught, he had his first pieces hung in Denver galleries. In 2008 he was named to the illustrious 21 under 31 list by Southwest Art Magazine.

His penchant for being different and unique was evident as a boy. He explains one of his quirkier traits- “I learned to tie my shoes from a certain large yellow bird on TV. Apparently it’s the wrong way but I still tie them that way.” It was also as a boy that he developed his strong work ethic. His mother instilled in him at an early age the importance of hard work, imparting on him that there are no handouts in life.

Burning Bright

This early influence, coupled with his natural abilities and intense desire to explore the artistic nature within, have given rise to an entirely new approach to traditional landscape, figurative and abstract work. He combines his ingenuity with amazing passion and energy to create his one-of-a-kind mixed media on acrylic pieces.

He says that if he were to have a career in any other field it would be as a musician. Even now he finds that playing music has an important role in his creative process as it fuels his creative energy. His music informs his art and his art informs his music, so much so that when one flourishes or suffers, so does the other. To listen to his music, go to: http://www.myspace.com/christopherowennelson

As demonstrated through his body of work, his vision continues to move forward, pushing the boundaries of color, scale and controlled emotion. Because of this, we are very excited to have Nelson as part of the Waxlander family. We are very pleased to share his unique talent with the Santa Fe art community and we look forward to watching his continued growth as an artist!

For more information about Christopher Nelson, please feel free to call us at the gallery at 505-984-2202 or visit his artist profile on our website: http://www.waxlander.com/artist/70/Christopher-Nelson

If purchasing a piece off the blog, mention that you found the piece on the blog and get a special discount!

Waxlander Gallery is pleased to welcome back Fletcher and John back this Christmas. This will make for a wonderful holiday at Waxlander, and it is their very special gift to all of us. Please join us as we enjoy their performance of Christmas carols.

Fletcher and John are a regular sight here at Waxlander Gallery, as they often play at openings, and are a well known sight elsewhere along Canyon Road. Make sure to visit their website at  http://fletcherandjohn.com/ .

Each year on Christmas Eve, Canyon Road hosts one of the most beloved holiday traditions in Santa Fe, the Canyon Road Farolito Walk. It is a beautiful and festive scene filled with bonfires, friends, families, carolers, and many galleries serving hot beverages.

It is one of our favorite events of the year. We love getting to share in the holiday cheer with old and new friends alike, and taking the time to mingle and chat with everyone who stops by. It is also a great opportunity for us to show off all of our wonderful artists and their work.

We will be serving hot cocoa and hot cider along with finger foods. So if you happen to start at the bottom of Canyon Road, we’ll be in the perfect spot to help get you warmed back up as you make your way further up the road.

About 30,000 people are expected to come out for this year’s Walk. There is always a celebratory feel in the air as people come together to spend time with those they love. Besides skiing or snowboarding, there generally aren’t too many reasons to spend an appreciable amount of time outdoors in the heart of winter, other than the Farolito Walk. On that topic, bonfires are generously stationed up and down the road so there is no need to worry about being too cold.

Avo Thompson has been a staple at the Farolito Walk for many years, launching his flying farolitos. Keep an eye out for them!

There will be plenty of music in the air, too! Carolers will be regaling everyone with song. Also joining in the fun, The Flying Farolito Brothers horn quintet will be out and about this year. From the Brothers, “We go from bonfire to bonfire playing beautiful 5-part versions of favorite traditional carols. If you spot a group of 5 cold, but happy looking musicians surrounded by a hundred or so people singing along, that’s probably us, feel free to join!”

Something else to look forward to at this year’s Walk- the world’s tallest elf! Not wanting to be spoilers, we won’t say anymore on that. It’s simply something you just need to see!

Festivities begin at 5pm and continue into the evening. Motor vehicle traffic will be strictly limited after that time and no vehicles will be allowed in the area between East Alameda and Acequia Madre. City buses will be the only vehicles allowed on Paseo de Peralta from East Alameda to Old Santa Fe Trail. Additionally, all are asked to have their vehicles off Canyon Road before 5:00 so as to leave as much room for fun and merriment as possible.

If you have any questions or are looking for more, please feel free to call us here at the gallery at 505-984-2202. We look forward to seeing you on Saturday the 24th if you are going to be in town. And from all of us here at Waxlander Gallery & Sculpture Garden, have a wonderful holiday weekend!

Did you get to see and meet contemporary Western and abstract painter Paul Cunningham when he was here recently? We had to pleasure of his company over the Thanksgiving weekend at our “Deck the Halls” opening show and look forward to seeing him again!

Softly Glides Along

A Colorado native, he has been working as an artist for three decades but has been in love with art ever since he was a boy. He is a self-taught artist with a deep appreciation for the West, having travelled extensively through Arizona, Wyoming, and New Mexico as a boy. It was from these trips that he gained the inspiration for his work. His art has been collected globally and he has been featured in publications such as Southwest Art magazine. Additionally, he has been the recipient of the prestigious George Phippen Memorial Foundation Award.

Autumns Touch

His mission as an artist is “to create stunning contemporary Western and Abstract paintings that nourish the mind, body and soul while openly inviting the participant to become a part of the world his paint brush has so flawlessly created.”

Clouds Drift In

For most of his career, Cunningham placed the focus for his work on western and southwestern themes, garnering well-deserved acclaim and notoriety. It was in 2009, however, that he became re-energized with his new abstract pieces. The deep, rich pallet- high clarity, full purity are Paul’s signature trademarks found in these pieces. Through a meticulous process, the end result always draws the art lover in with a broad spectrum of hues which find a way of sublimating to the overall theme.

Temptation

We invite you see for yourself why his work is described as cunningly captivating. His abstract pieces in particular draw one in, looking both other-worldly and yet oddly familiar.

If purchasing a piece off the blog, mention that you found the piece on the blog and get a special discount!

We are very pleased to welcome pastel painter Phyllis Randall to the Waxlander Gallery & Sculpture Garden family!

Canyon Road Morning

After The Rain

She became fully entranced with Southwest on her first visit to Santa Fe in 1993 and has been capturing its beauty and uniqueness ever since.  “I absolutely fell in love with the area,” she says of that trip to the Land of Enchantment, “and I told my husband I think I must have lived out here in another life.”  That’s quite the statement from a self-described ‘East coast girl’.  As a native of Baltimore, she still lives in Maryland but calls the Southwest her “home away from home.”

It was after that trip that Randall began painting again after a 10 year hiatus in which she chose to focus on her career in advertising and graphic design, owning her own studio with her husband.  With her experience in this field and with formal training in oil portraiture and realism, you might say that Randall was well suited to paint the Southwest upon making her connection with it back in 1993.  In time, she transitioned from oil to pastel, which she describes as, “an intense medium that captures rich, pure colors and reflects the play of light and shadow giving the painting visual excitement and depth.”

Cross Reference

Lupie's Garden

In spite of it being an intense medium, it certainly is a labor of love for Randall.  During her career she has garnered much praise for her work and has become a highly acclaimed pastel artist.  But for her, the results of her work bring her the greatest pleasure.  She says, “There’s nothing more rewarding than seeing an image emerge out of the darkness of the rich, black underlying paper.”

You can see Phyllis Randall’s work now at Waxlander Gallery & Sculpture Garden, located at 622 Canyon Road in Santa Fe.  For more information on Phyllis Randall please visit Phyllis Randall’s Artists page, or please call us at 505-984-2202.

If purchasing a piece off the blog, mention that you found the piece on the blog and get a special discount!