SCOTTSDALE: ART AND OLD TOWN

Scottsdale has a well-defined arts district that includes a large number of galleries.  A lot of the galleries specialize in western art, but others are more general in their orientation.  Although it is usually not allowed to take photos inside the galleries, but a lot of the larger sculptures are on the street.  The sculptures include a number of bronzes, which prove difficult to photograph.  They generally have little variation in hue, and their glossy surfaces tend to project a faded appearance.  Nevertheless, I did my best, as in the following.

This charming girl was part of a larger sculpture.

In the above photo, I was trying to capture the essence of the sculpture--the couple holding hands with the rose between them.

The cowboy in the following photo was extremely lanky, and, even though he had an expressive face, I thought the best angle was from behind.

And I decided I wanted to position this cowboy on horseback so that his face was profiled against the lighter colored horse.

The outside sculptures also included a very large (at least four feet high) blue human head.  Here are a couple of shots.

"Sculptures" in the nearby Old Town section of town included an interesting piece composed of items of clothing (or at least cloth) combined to form a colorful tree.

Here are a couple of details from the sculpture.

The trunk was made of stuffed bluejeans.  Very clever.

Here are a few more photos from this area that I thought worked well as more artistic studies.

I particularly liked this study of light and shadows that took advantage of Arizona's bright sunlight.