"Taos Coloring Book " ©2009 by Valerie Graves...$10

"Carousel Coloring Book " ©2009 by Valerie Graves...$10

Valerie Graves was awarded the Lifetime Achievement Award for Fine Art at the prestigious Taos Invites Taos Show at the Fall Arts Festival by the Taos Medical Services Foundation who sponsors the highly acclaimed show. She joins R.C. Gorman and Agnes Martin in receiving that special honor. She has won the Best Traditional Painting Award for seven years now - along with two Best In Show Awards.

Valerie Graves is currently included in the atttractive and informative book, "Landscapes of New Mexico," published by Fresco Fine Art Publications. New Mexico's top landscape painters are showcased in the book. Contact Valerie Graves Art at seth@powerhorse.com to find out how to order an artist signed copy of the book.

Special! New soft-cover, full-color book, "Magical Seasons of New Mexico, Paintings by Valerie Graves." (at left) "This is a wonderful book for anyone who loves New Mexico in all of her magnificent seasons, and for anyone who admires Valerie Graves and her exceptional ability to capture the light and color of our beautiful state."
Please click here for further information on this book.

New Mexico Rainstorm © 2008 Valerie Graves
Graves was featured in the nationwide traveling Exhibition, the Horse In Fine Art by the American Academy of Equine Art. The Exhibition was held at the Wildlife Experience in Parker, Colorado.
Her painting, pictured at right and titiled "New Mexico Rainstorm", was sold at the exhibition, and is available as a limited edition print. There are thirty-five painters and twenty-one sculptors whose work was included in the exhibition, The Horse in Fine Art, and, according to the catalog, "they are the most renowned and talented artists working in this genre today." They have represented the horse in diverse surroundings and activities such as racing, fox hunting, show jumping and polo. Exhibition Co-Curators:Xochitl S. Barnes, AAEA Director of Exhibitions, David J. Wagner, Ph.D., Curator/Tour Director, David J. Wagner, L.L.C.

The image and power of Taos Mountain and the Taos Valley play a central role in Valerie Graves work, and are portrayed in their many moods and in various seasons. The rich golden light of sunset which highlights the Sangre de Cristos and casts lush, deep purple shadows is vividly captured in her glowing pastels and oils

"Sunny Autumn Afternoon"
Oil 14" x 18" Sold
©2006 Valerie Graves

The quiet softness of The First Light, the delicate infusion of sunlight just before the sun rises, is both a feeling and a realness which Valerie Graves captures in her Early Morning series.

In her Moonlight, Firelight and Nightime series, she successfully and gently paints elusive, almost mystical scenes which are made up of many subtle colors and shadows. She conveys the powerful but quiet interplay of light and shadow, firelight and darkness with her usual, astounding ability.

The remarkable quality and effectiveness of her work lies in the fact that she recreates both the feeling of the place she is painting and the reality of the place she is painting. Critics use the word sensitivity over and over in respect to her work, sensitivity without cliche, without garishness, without dishonesty. The beauty she chooses as subject matter is always conveyed from her heart, spontaneously. Perhaps that is why she can capture what is elusive to almost everyone else.

The remarkable painting, Taos Pueblo Christmas Eve,
depicts the bonfire lit night with astounding emotion and strength!

In addition to landscapes, Valerie Graves also paints some elements of Taos Pueblo and other Indian Ceremonials. She respectfully paints only those permitted aspects of important Native American dances or processions because much of what occurs is sacred. These works are beyond description and beyond praise largely because this is as important to her as the pure and overwhelming beauty which surrounds her.

Taos Mountain, sacred to the Taos Pueblo people and part of the Sangre de Cristo Mountain Range (meaning Blood of Christ in Spanish, so named for the sunset colors which wash across the entire length of mountains) is a central part of her everyday life.

Taos Pueblo Winter Stillness © Valerie Graves
Graves is represented by galleries across the country with original paintings and and prints available in Taos at Valerie Graves Fine Art Gallery, in The Carson House Shop Patio Room in Taos. She is the main artist at the online gallery - BirdSongGallery.com which was especially designed to feature her Bird and Wildlife work.
She has been an invited and juried exhibitor in many prestigious shows nationwide; has received numerous awards and grants including multiple Best In Show Awards; is included in many museum and private collections; has illustrated a popular book on adobe architecture; and has been a featured artist in a number of Fine Art Magazines.

"Blossoms & Shadows" © by Valerie Graves
Available as a Print Only

Valerie Graves Main Page ||| Original Paintings ||| Posters ||| Lithographs ||| Etchings ||| Artist Signed Prints ||| Limited Edition Artist Enhanced Prints