Palm Springs Art Museum Presents Treasures Of West

On April 11, 2007 the Palm Springs Art Museum’s Treasures of the West: Art from Desert Collections exhibition will open to the public featuring over 100 artworks collected by residents of the Coachella Valley as well as select works from the Art Museum’s permanent collection.

This exhibition will incorporate themes of changing perceptions of the West in American art over the past 100 years. It will include Native American and American art in various media, showing artists working in historic to contemporary styles.

Traditional images of the American West recall themes of an untamed wilderness and the promise of a “new beginning” which became central to the American spirit and our national identity. These historic examples provide inspiration and influence for new trends in contemporary art. In combining traditional Western themes with contemporary perspectives, the exhibition will address how the role of art has shaped a new understanding and perception of the West.

Artworks by George Catlin, William Keith, William Leigh, Frank Tenney Johnson, Maynard Dixon, Allan Houser along with contemporary artists Andy Warhol, Harold Joe Waldrum, Roy de Forest and Arlo and Dan Namingha are but a few of the artists that will be featured from over 25 local collections.

Treasures of the West: Art from Desert Collections is generously supported by presenting sponsor—The Helene & Lou Galen Art Exhibition Fund. The exhibition is organized by the Palm Springs Art Museum and funded in part by the Western Art Council. Season in the Sun magazine is the official media sponsor.