Inside Southwest ContemporarySouthwestThe Road
Our call for pitches for “The Road” was regurgitated back to us by AI writers around the world. We almost fell for one of them.
March 17, 2026
Accepting an invitation to a major biennial is one thing, closing gaps in institutional support is another. Three Southwest artists sound off.
March 10, 2026
Over six years, artist Cara Romero and curator Jami C. Powell resisted the art world’s rush to capitalize on Native art. Their show just arrived in Phoenix.
March 05, 2026
Texas university cancels ICE-critical exhibition, History Colorado expands its Borderlands initiative with Ken Salazar, and more top Southwest art news for March 2026.
March 03, 2026
In response to Joshua Ware's critical reflection on her Denver public artworks, Paula Castillo warns against flattening lived inheritance into a “surface mixture.”
March 02, 2026
Christian Ramírez's scope is technically local at Phoenix Art Museum, but the assistant curator channels years of Southwest connections from Tucson to El Paso.
February 12, 2026
The just-announced curator of SITE Santa Fe's next biennial reveals his multi-venue ambitions for a show punctuated by immersive "moments of encounter."
February 03, 2026
IAIA avoids being federally "zeroed out," historic Native lawmaker and artist Ben Nighthorse Campbell dies, and more top Southwest art news for February 2026.
February 03, 2026
After Ed Mell’s passing, his Phoenix studio tells the story of a low-key artist whose Southwest images reached the nation on a postage stamp and beyond.
January 29, 2026
In Paula Castillo's three new public artworks across downtown Denver, cultural fusion is an optimistic and ideologically risky proposition.
January 15, 2026
In cyanotypes and soft sculptures, genderfluid artist maps queer elements of Phoenix—from dilapidated signs to their own body.
January 08, 2026
Roswell Museum's one-year update after major flood, three international biennials tap Southwest creatives, and more top Southwest art news for January 2026.
January 06, 2026
The Southwest art world doesn't hibernate. SWC editorial director Jordan Eddy selects thirty-five exhibitions—and three hot trends—for the cold season.
December 16, 2025
Books + LiteraryInside Southwest Contemporary
Desperate times call for exceptional reads. Pick up an ode to "bad" writing, a novel set in the West Bank, and more 2025 book picks by the Southwest Contemporary team.
December 15, 2025
If you're feeling cooped up, Mexico City delivers intense cultural saturation. Discover residencies that drop artists and curators straight into the action.
December 11, 2025
A forthcoming Las Vegas museum may be linked to LACMA, but its preemptive show Family Album threads the needle between national and local dialogues.
December 09, 2025
In Colorado Springs, an art center's landmark reinstallation of its collection reconsiders the Southwest—breaking the old shape of regionalism in art history.
December 04, 2025
Utah-born artist Alma Allen tapped for Venice Biennale, Colorado artist Danielle SeeWalker headed to the West Bank, and more top Southwest art news headlines for December 2025.
December 02, 2025
Your 2025 holiday guide to affordable gifts by local artists at Southwest museum stores, in person and online. Shop Black Friday, Museum Store Sunday, and beyond.
November 25, 2025
From pure intuition to a pricing calculator, artists and gallerists across the Southwest reveal how they actually put numbers on their work.
November 18, 2025
A Denver museum’s alleged act of censorship is stirring national debate, as stakeholders clash over who gets to tell the story—and who gets heard.
November 11, 2025
Southwest artists contribute to insurgent Met show, Meow Wolf workers stage walkout in Dallas, and more top Southwest art news headlines for November 2025.
November 04, 2025
The Yes Men used slick branding to spoof ExxonMobil in New Mexico. Inside the cloak and dagger intervention by a wave of "laugh-tivists" with a serious cause.
October 30, 2025
Through LiDAR scans, UK-based studio ScanLAB Projects captured the Sonoran Desert in haunting detail, revealing a landscape on the brink.
October 09, 2025
Artists pressure Judy Chicago to cancel exhibition in Tel Aviv, Gallup Arts rejects grant funding in protest of escalating censorship, and more top Southwest art news headlines for October 2025.
October 02, 2025
As Trump “reviews” the Smithsonian and NEA rules shift, New Mexico arts groups are weighing whether to reject state grants tied to federal funding.
September 18, 2025
In a single 1978 acquisition, the Museum of International Folk Art grew by 100,000 objects—and effectively adopted their fervent and eccentric collector.
September 16, 2025
Change is afoot in the metro Phoenix gallery scene due to closures, mergers, and redevelopment plans.
September 11, 2025
Vail settles lawsuit with Danielle SeeWalker over her painting G is for Genocide, hundreds of culture organizations sign open letter denouncing censorship, and more top Southwest art news headlines for September 2025.
September 02, 2025
Institute of American Indian Arts leaders on turning the tides in their federal funding fight—and why it’s not over yet.
August 26, 2025
