First Fridays are stressful. You start by asking yourself which galleries do I want to visit first, then, on paper or in your head, you must keep track of time, crowds, parking and just how many art districts you can visit from 6 p.m. til 9 p.m.

Last Friday was a no brainer. I was going to Abend Gallery‘s Landscape Show. All participating artist’s works were easy to swoon over,  such as Lorenzo Chavez, Stephen Day, Tim Deibler, Bruce Gomez, David Harms, Marin Dobson, Jane Hunt, Peggy McGivern, Elizabeth Sandia, Dave Santillanes, Jean Shom to name a few.

Abend has a strong reputation for quality art but, owner, Chris Serr‘s real genius is in selecting unknown, accomplished artists.   One of my favorite new artists, I’ve only seen at Abend is Elsa Sroka.  Her Bovine series had me thinking I want a cow on my living room wall. Sroka wasn’t technically in this show but her cows were hanging here & there throughout the gallery.

Our landscape artists are pretty lucky.  They don’t have to travel far from their studios to capture a snowcapped mountain or a frozen river bed. Abend’s meditative show conveyed majestic Colorado scenes painted by artists who recognize the hourly difference between vibrant, atmospheric colors of fall, winter, summer and spring, snow resting gently on spring flowers. They know a thing or two about using the complete range of the color spectrum to explain a 2-D Western sunset. If you believe an artist speaks through his work, these paintings tell beautifully quiet, narratives about the West.

Abend Gallery is a good stop after an kick-ass week. Take your time and absorb the beauty of the West and the spectacular scenery at the corner of York & Colfax. This show goes through May 3, 2014.

Artist David Harms, above.

3rd photo – Trevor, the best gallery assistant ever. He has been working with his mom since he was fourteen years old. We’ve watched him grow into a creative photographer and superb gallery administrator.

5th photo – look who I ran into – artist, Desmond O’Hagan.

10th photo – landscape artist, Jean Shom.

Abend Gallery, 2260 E. Colfax, 80206. 303-355-0905. info@abendgallery.com