As Art Santa Fe celebrates its milestone 25th Anniversary edition, we’re proud to announce this year’s Spotlight Award recipients—a select group of artists recognized for their creativity, innovation, and forward-thinking contributions to contemporary art.

Art Santa Fe 2025 will feature a dynamic mix of 75+ galleries, art dealers, and independent artists from around the world, showcasing original works in a variety of mediums—paintings, prints, drawings, sculpture, photography, ceramics, giclées, lithographs, glass, and more.

Kicking off Santa Fe Art Week (July 9–20, 2025), this year’s fair offers attendees a rich lineup of special programming, including immersive Art Lab experiences and inspiring Meet the Artist sessions.

From an impressive roster of exhibitors, the Spotlight Program highlights a curated group of standout artists, offering collectors a focused view of emerging and established talent shaping the future of the visual arts.

Check out this year’s Spotlight Program recipients below!

Andrea Cermanski, Andrea Cermanski Art – Booth 304

Andrea Cermanski is a Santa Fe-based artist with nearly three decades of experience. She holds degrees in Art History and Art Education, and her work has been shown in solo and group exhibitions, including Feminists Under Forty, curated by Judy Chicago. Featured in Contemporary Art of the Southwest (2014), her work is held in national and corporate collections. Represented by galleries in New Orleans and San Jose del Cabo, Cermanski creates abstract works inspired by nature’s color, light, and texture. Her intuitive process invites contemplation, evoking a sense of place through layered compositions and emotional resonance.

www.andreacermanski.com

Antonio Galvan, Antonio Galvan Art – Booth 108

Antonio Galván López was born on May 19, 1980, in Mexico City. At 19, he immigrated to the United States in search of new opportunities and began his artistic journey as an assistant to renowned Spanish painter and sculptor Manolo Valdés. Though he had little knowledge of art at the time, his curiosity and dedication grew steadily over 24 years of collaboration. What began as a job became a deep passion and life’s calling. Through perseverance, Antonio mastered a wide range of techniques, including bronze casting, glass, ceramics, resins, wood, alabaster, and painting. His work reflects a tireless commitment to craftsmanship and innovation. Today, he continues to explore new mediums, driven by a profound understanding that artistic excellence requires constant growth, experimentation, and a lifelong love of learning.

www.antonio-galvan.com

 

Bethany Richards, BRD Arts – Booth 319

Bethany Richards is a Santa Fe-based artist whose work blends vibrant color, emotional depth, and a sense of wonder inspired by the landscapes of Northern New Mexico. Raised on a ranch in West Texas, she developed an early connection to nature, creativity, and imagination – often found stargazing or exploring the open plains. Her formal training in art therapy at the College of Santa Fe deeply informs her artistic practice, which spans murals, mixed media on canvas, and her signature reverse glass paintings.

This technique – painting in reverse on the back of glass – requires building each piece layer by layer, starting with highlights and details, resulting in images that feel both spontaneous and enchantingly unexpected. After years spent in medical school and residency, Bethany returned to Santa Fe in 2020 with her wife and son to begin her career as a hospital physician. Her dual paths in art and medicine reflect a shared commitment to joy, healing, and human connection.

www.brdarts.com

D.R. Jones, Red Hand Art – Booth 231

D.R. Jones is a Texas-based expressionist painter whose vibrant acrylic works blend bold color, cultural symbolism, and personal narrative. Raised in Lubbock, Jones’s early exposure to Southwestern art—particularly the works of John Nieto—inspired his lifelong passion for visual storytelling. His series, including Legends, Women in Hats, and Colorful Animals, reflect a fusion of Texan heritage, rock-and-roll sensibility, and evolving social awareness. Employing dynamic brushwork and layered compositions, Jones captures the emotional essence of his subjects, from iconic figures to everyday scenes. His art has been exhibited across Texas, New Mexico, and New York, and is held in private collections nationwide. Currently residing in Wimberley, Texas, Jones continues to explore the expressive potential of color and form, inviting viewers into a world where personal history and cultural identity converge.

www.red-hand-art.com

Katie Laws, Painted Nook – Booth 515

Katie Laws is a Tucson, Arizona, based artist whose vibrant acrylic paintings celebrate the beauty of the Sonoran Desert and the emotional resonance of color. A wife, mother of four, and entrepreneur, Katie turned to painting in 2019 as a personal sanctuary amidst the demands of family life and business ownership. The sudden loss of her mother-in-law in 2024 became a pivotal moment, inspiring her to pursue art more seriously and establish her studio, Painted Nook. Utilizing thick brush and palette knife strokes, her textured canvases depict landscapes, florals, and desert botanicals, often in bold, joyful hues. Katie’s work has been featured in exhibitions, and she actively engages with her community by teaching paint-along classes at her family’s restaurant. Her art serves as a testament to finding peace and fulfillment through creativity, inviting viewers to experience the joy and tranquility that painting brings to her life.

www.katielaws.art

Art San Diego returns for its 16th edition from November 1-3, set against the stunning backdrop of the San Diego Convention Center, right in the heart of the city’s lively downtown. This year’s Spotlight Program shines a light on a select group, each recognized for their standout creativity and forward-thinking, innovative work.

Art San Diego is set to once again feature an eclectic mix of exhibiting galleries, art dealers, and artists from around the world. Attendees can expect a diverse showcase of original works from hundreds of artists, including prints, paintings, drawings, sculptures, photography, ceramics, giclees, lithographs, and glass pieces, among other contemporary and fine art forms.

This year’s edition promises a dynamic experience with a packed schedule of events. In addition to the Spotlight Program, key highlights include Art Labs, the Discoveries Collection, the [LOCAL TALENT] Program, Meet the Artist sessions, and the amazing Access to Art collaborative program.

From the extensive list of exhibitors, Art San Diego’s curators proudly present the 2024 Spotlight Program recipients, offering collectors an in-depth look at a remarkable group of creatives celebrated for their exceptional talent and originality in the visual arts.

Check out this year’s Spotlight Program recipients below!

Born and raised in Colorado with a childhood in Santa Fe, New Mexico, Dylan Montanio developed an early love for southwestern art, culture, and the natural world. The rugged landscapes of Colorado and New Mexico, particularly the sight of old, weathered homesteads in the mountains, have long sparked his imagination.

Art has always been a passion for Montanio. He won a local art contest at a young age, but despite his early success, he chose to attend culinary school rather than art school. Yet, art remained a constant in his life. Over the years, Montanio exhibited his work in various galleries across Colorado, including notable showings at the Zodiac Gallery, Color and Light Gallery, and the RAW Artists Showcase.

A near-fatal car accident and personal hardships caused Montanio to step away from art to focus on his culinary career. However, his creative drive resurfaced over time. Gradually, he returned to sketching, painting, and playing guitar. After the loss of close friends and his beloved canine companion in 2023, Dylan made the life-changing decision to fully commit to his art once again.

Founded in 2021 in Santa Fe, New Mexico, GAIA is located on Santa Fe’s hub for the arts, historic and vibrant Canyon Road. The gallery specializes in organic, contemporary works that celebrate the beauty of nature while fostering meaningful, thought-provoking dialogue.

GAIA is dedicated to upholding the highest curatorial standards, promoting both artistic excellence and genuine innovation. This commitment is reflected in the gallery’s relationship with both collectors and artists. Collectors are offered a thoughtful and discerning experience as they build their collections, while artists are encouraged to push creative boundaries with complete freedom.

In addition to its curated exhibitions, GAIA collaborates closely with private collectors, assisting in building and refining collections, sourcing specific works, and providing art advisory services. The gallery also supports home and corporate art installations. Trusted by its collectors for expertise and passion, GAIA continues to showcase the best in contemporary art. GAIA will also be exhibiting at Red Dot Miami 2024

George Strasburger approaches his work with a classical sensibility, beginning each large-scale oil painting with meticulous drawings to help him envision the final piece. His compositions are thoughtfully constructed, balancing loose, expressive brushstrokes with precise detailing, all designed to enhance the story he aims to tell.

Strasburger’s paintings offer a distinctive perspective on the human condition, highlighting everyday moments that reflect fundamental acts or needs. Primarily working in oils, he also has a deep love for drawing. His inspiration comes from the people around him, the surrounding landscapes, and the shared experiences that unite us as conscious beings. Through his art, he captures beauty while uncovering deeper existential truths, inviting viewers to connect with the universal aspects of life.

An award-winning and prolific artist, Strasburger has had solo exhibitions across the Southwest. He currently resides in Tucson, AZ, where he paints full-time, continuing to explore the human experience through his art.

Born in Israel to Russian parents and raised in Italy, Fogelfeld’s multicultural upbringing has profoundly shaped her artistic path. She pursued formal art education at prestigious institutions, including the Brera Institute of Art in Milan, the School of Art in Tel Aviv, and the Art Institute in Bat Yam, Israel. Fogelfeld began her career as a watercolorist, showcasing her work in exhibitions across Israel and the United States.

Her paintings are renowned for their dynamic interplay of lines, shapes, color, and light. Through her art, Fogelfeld captures the essence of the Tuscan hills, the shimmering reflections of Italian port cities, the melancholy of a woman’s expression, and the vibrant hues seen from a Venetian bridge. She primarily works with watercolors and acrylics, often blending the two mediums to evoke the emotions tied to specific moments.

Fogelfeld draws deep inspiration from the philosophy of early 20th-century artist Alberto Giacometti, who believed that “The object of art is not to reproduce reality, but to create a reality of the same intensity.”