JACKSON HOLE, WYO – It’s a local’s favorite that has become the worst-kept secrets in the valley. The 51st Art Fair Jackson Hole is almost upon us, and it is without a doubt one of Jackson’s favorite outdoor festivals.
Watch for the fair on the Miller Park lawn this weekend—Friday, July 7 to Sunday, July 9—in the heart of Jackson Hole. The event includes 150 nationally acclaimed artists that are expected to draw an estimated 5,000 art lovers.
It is nearly impossible to highlight just a few of this year’s artists but Buckrail has only so much space so we spotlight a handful here that caught our eye.
Desarae Lee
The term “tortured artist” has become almost cliché in its stereotype but it’s a real thing and there are more than few artists who have created great works through their own personal pain and challenges.
Desarae Lee is a fine artist and illustrator based in Salt Lake City, Utah. She would be the first to acknowledge she has learned to find humor in pain, beauty in the grotesque, and light in the darkness—all through her own battles with depression and anxiety disorders.
The BYU educated artist is best known for her tiny, intaglio-like drawings. She prefers working in pen and printmaking. She has been nominated twice for a City Weekly Arty Award. She’s been featured in ArtsyShark and Slug Magazine, and selected to participate in the Utah Arts Festival, Bellevue Arts Festival, and Art in the Pearl.
David Jonason
Combining a keenly observant eye, the professional experience of 25 years as one of America’s top illustrators, and inspiration drawn from a cavalcade of 20th-century art movements and artists, David Jonason achieves a uniquely personal vision through his iconic, vividly dreamlike oil paintings of the American Southwest.
Jonason designed the Art Fair poster this year. Art aficionados will undoubtedly recognize his Cubism style. He is, in fact, considered one of America’s top illustrators, working within the realm of Cubism and Realism.
Bland Hoke & David Dahlin
It doesn’t get any more farm-to-table than Grand Pan. Two local artists—Bland Hoke and David Dahlin—team up to repurpose old farming tilling disks into cast-iron pans suitable for use in the kitchen or display in a museum.
Hoke and Dahlin travel the American Midwest to find the farm relics that will become their next work of art. Each pan comes with a trackable history and are well-suited for cooking. The two artists call it “kick-ass cookware.”
Richard Rodriguez
Contemporary western artist Richard Rodriguez from Colorado was selected as the July Emerging Artist and he will display for the first time at the July fair.
The native Coloradan graduated from the University of Colorado and studied at the Art Students League of Denver. He teaches and works in the architecture field. In his free time you’ll find this cowboy drawing, painting, and riding his quarter horse Skippin’ Thru Smoke.
