Art exhibition captures people, culture of American Southwest

"Prairie Fire" by Robert Farrington Elwell is among the work to be featured in "Big Skies, Brave People: Southwest American Art from the Panhandle-Plains Historical Museum, Canyon, Texas" opening Saturday, Jan. 26, in the Ledbetter Gallery in The Cole Art Center.

NACOGDOCHES, TEXAS - The Stephen F. Austin State University College of Fine Arts and School of Art will open "Big Skies, Brave People: Southwest American Art from the Panhandle-Plains Historical Museum, Canyon, Texas" with a 6 p.m. reception Saturday, Jan. 26, in The Cole Art Center @ The Old Opera House in downtown Nacogdoches.

Capturing the people, landscape and culture of the American Southwest, this exhibition features American Indian paintings and works from the highly regarded Taos Colony, Taos Society of Artists and Santa Fe Colony.

"Big Skies, Brave People" will run through March 22 in the Ledbetter Gallery, and it is part of the College of Fine Arts' University Series exhibitions. The show is sponsored in part by the Nacogdoches Junior Forum and SFA Friends of the Visual Arts.

All exhibitions, receptions and gallery talks are free and open to the public.

The Cole Art Center is located at 329 E. Main St. Gallery hours are from 12:30 to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Friday and from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday. For additional information, please call (936) 468-1131.