This inclusive exhibition will showcase more than 100 pieces of artwork created by around 55 past and present members of ABH.
“ This prominent exhibition is broad in scope and ambitious in vision, promising something for everyone. Artwork will include paintings, sculpture, photography, printmaking, jewelry, collage, assemblage and more. Artwork is inclusive of realism to abstraction and all styles in between. Various artwork themes are created with a broad range of media, showcasing the unique approach of each artist. The exhibit represents distinct artistic approaches, sparking creative thinking and long impressions,” said ABH secretary Barbara Kieffer Rowe.
Depending on size, each artist has one to three fine art pieces on display. A number of the pieces are for sale, although they will remain on display until the show is over.
To celebrate the beginning of the show, the participating artists gathered opening night for a reception and gallery talk given by long-time ABH member Tim Peterson.
With an art degree from Northern State University in Aberdeen, Tim has been a working artist for the last 45 years. In 1994, he opened a commercial art business in Spearfish called Flat Earth Art Company. Later, Tim joined AHB in 2007, two years after its inception, and has served in a variety of capacities over the years.
Originally, Mick Harrison suggested the idea of forming ABH to Dale Lamphere, South Dakota Artist Laureate, while at an art show in Rapid City.
“ Mick came up with the idea of trying to form a group of artists to aid in marketing and to make the Black Hills an art destination. From that germ of an idea with Mick Harrison, he reached out to a number of other artist friends of his, and they spread the word,” said Tim.
Prior to forming the group, there were three initial meetings in Spearfish, Rapid City and Hot Springs to reach as many artists geographically as they could. After the meetings, they decided to proceed with forming the nonprofit organization.
“ Their initial membership was around 20 at the beginning of 2005,” said Tim.
Members were juried in by submitting a resume and images of artwork to the membership committee for review, and this practice has continued.
Landscape painter and ABH member Jan Sohl said,“ Each of our ABH members has been juried into the organization by a selection committee made up of a cross-section of ABH artists representing the entire body of the membership. The intent of this organization is to make evident the large pool of professional artistic talent in the Black Hills region and the impact that art has on the quality of life.”
“ We’ re looking for professional skill level and a mastery of craft and art theory,” said Tim.
Members of the ABH are not required to live in the Black Hills, but they are required to have a presence in the area. This could include a history of showing in exhibitions in the area or representation by galleries in the Black Hills.
Through the organization, professional artists, artisans and galleries joined together with the goal of presenting and promoting the Black Hills region as an art destination.
“ It was certainly a group effort,” said Tim.“ Those efforts started to take form by use of advertising in national publications, including Art of the West and Southwest Art. They also formed a website.”
This was at the very beginning of the social media blitz, according to Tim, and ABH got in on the ground floor in hopes of getting people to come to the Hills to look at their art. Each artist also got a listing on the website, showing their work, background and a bio to inform people about the artists and what they do.
That exposure is one of the main things ABH has provided its members with over the years.
“ I often say that making the artwork is the easy part of the job. Marketing and selling is the hardest part. Most artists are solitary workers. They ' re in their studio, making art and not interacting with a lot of people, but to actually sell art and to get it out in the public, in galleries and shows and all that sort of thing, it ' s a whole different mindset. It takes a lot of non-creative effort to do that, and a lot of artists look for opportunities to network with other artists to get their ideas about marketing as well as art techniques,” said Tim.
22 Down Country Roads July / August 2025