The Western Art Associates are a congenial group of friends with a common interest in all aspects of the art and culture of the American west.

We are all members of Phoenix Art Museum, a condition of membership in WAA, and though we have a great appreciation of all of the Museum's collections and participate in many programs there, we especially enjoy "western art".  Membership in WAA offers the opportunity to join in many support activities for the Museum, and in that regard we have funded many exhibitions, made critical acquisitions, provided funds for conservation, and promoted many other special initiatives.  

We get together often to enjoy camaraderie at our "Saloon" parties, exhibit and lecture programs, meetings, and group travel to fun places in search of the art and artists that we love.

We will always welcome new members having an appreciation of art and the spirit of western adventure.

                         Members of WAA enjoy the educational and social opportunities of a Saloon

Art of the American West

Trying to define the American West is a complex task; it has meant different things to different people at different points in time.  Tied to layers of myth and reality, it may be understood through the history of the "westering" of the North American continent, its settlement, dramatic geography or diverse populations.  Since the late nineteenth century, the West has been appreciated as symbolic of the nation's spirit - a land of opportunity, self reliance and independence.  Today, the "New West" is strongly connected to our nation's economics, population shift, and ecology, yet the early stories of the cowboy and American Indian still resonate.  Many of America's greatest writers, historians, painters, sculptors and filmmakers have come up with their own definitions; their interpretations are personal and highly individualistic, a characteristic of the West itself.

Artists working in the American West have always been faced with a unique set of challenges.  For example. it is difficult to give an illusion of the tremendous space of the desert, prairie or lofty mountains on a two-dimensional surface.  The intense light of the region often creates a purity of color and depth of vision unlike that allowed by the filtered light of the more humid East.  To render detail becomes an editorial decision.  Imagine trying to paint the Grand Canyon, a geographical wonder that is sixteen miles aceoss and one mile deep!  How does a painter successfully deal with a location that carries so many possibilities?  How does an artist represent the complexity of the West?  The objects in the Museum's galleries represent a variety of solutions, from the images of early discovery, exploration and myth-making to contemporary interpretations of the New West

                         Edward Pottast, "Looking Across the Grand Canyon, c. 1910, oil on canvas,                              Museum purchase with funds provided by Western Art Associates.

                                                               © Western Art Associates, 2010