Great refrence guide for all things SW

No matter where you look, the Southwestern influence is prevelent today. In furniture, housing, dishware and china, and of course, artwork. The bold colors, arresting subjects, broad vistas and wonderful feeling of old-west just can't be beat.

This magazine takes it to it's pinacle, interviewing artists and depicting their work on a one-on-one level that lets you really get inside the artwork being represented.

You meet not only media artists who work in oil, pencil, pen and ink, water color, etc., but also potters and jewlers, sculptors and fiber artists. Anyone who takes nothing and makes something is here.

Personally, working as an artist, I buy it for inspiration. Every time I get stuck, I flip through an issue and let the colors start to work their magic. I then sit down and sew, or bead, and create.

Recently, while working on an American Indian doll to be done in full dance regalia, I was having a terrible time with research material to make it accurate. I had browsed the internet, tried e-mailing different American Indian groups for info, and gotten no where. I picked up a current issue, and there, in all her glory, was a sculpture of a woman in dance regalia just as I had planned to make! While it may not tell me what she wore under it, it does give me some ideas of structure of her dress and the way the beadwork was attached and located. The artist was an American Indian himself, so I'm fairly sure it is accurate.

Some times I just enjoy sitting down with the latest issue and browsing through the photos and articles for the shear beauty they present. There are plenty of advertisements for artists and galleries so if something does catch your eye, chances are pretty good you would be able to find it.

Whether you are an artist, or just a collector of lovely things, this is a magazine worth a read. Well written, lovely photos, excellent content. What more could you ask for?