Visit Grand Canyon National Park early in September and you'll be able to watch masters at work as they try to capture all the vibrancy and moodiness of the canyon during the 4th Annual Grand Canyon Celebration of Art.

The event, sponsored by the Grand Canyon Association, features 26 artists from around the country who have created a studio piece for the exhibition and will paint plein air during the week before the exhibit opens.

Visitors will have the opportunity to watch the artists paint as they seek to represent the shifting light and shadow, amazing land forms, and vibrant colors of this vast landscape. Between September 8 and 12 you'll be able to find artists at the North and South Rims and, for the first time this year, at Phantom Ranch and Indian Garden.

Long before there was color photography, artists like Thomas Moran and Gunner Widfoss contributed to capturing the beauty and mystery of Grand Canyon through art. It was their paintings that helped communicate to the world the need for preservation of such a special place.

In 2009, the Grand Canyon Association rejuvenated this idea and brought artists to the South Rim for a week of painting and appreciation of art in the canyon. Today, Celebration of Art exposes tens of thousands of people to live artist renderings at Grand Canyon. It has become the model for outdoor art events in national parks.

Event Schedule:

September 8 to September 12, 4 p.m.

Artist plein air demonstrations along the rim adjacent to El Tovar.

September 9 to September 12, 5:30 p.m.

Artist plein air demonstrations at North Rim Lodge .

September 13, sunrise until 10 a.m.

Artists will paint along the South Rim between Mather Point and Kolb

Studio.

September 13, 7 p.m.

Special evening presentation at Shrine of Ages

September 14, 9 a.m. to 11 a.m.

Quick Draw competition with artists painting along the South Rim between

Mather Point and Kolb Studio.

September 14, 12 p.m.

Auction of the quick draw paintings on north lawn of El Tovar.

September 14, 7 p.m. to 9 p.m.

Buyer’s Preview and Awards reception at Kolb Studio.

September 15, 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Opening Reception and Awards ceremony at Kolb Studio.

September 16-21 New this year!

Award-winning artist Linda Glover Gooch will teach a Grand Canyon Field Institute/Scottsdale Artists’ School Plein Air Painting Workshop on the South Rim.

Exhibition & Sale at Kolb Studio from September 15 - November 25, 2012

Visit the Grand Canyon Association's website for information and updates at .

Proceeds from this event will support the goal of funding an art venue at the South Rim of the Grand Canyon. This permanent home will ensure that future generations of park visitors will be able to view the stunning art collection in the Grand Canyon National Park Museum and Grand Canyon Association Collections.

2012 Grand Canyon Artists

Joshua Been, CO Becky Joy, AZ

Shonto Begay, AZ Paul Kratter, CA

Elizabeth Black, CO Joella Jean Mahoney, AZ

Amery Bohling, AZ Larry Moore, FL

John D. Cogan, NM P.A. Nisbet, NM

Bill Cramer, AZ Erin O’Connor, WY

Robert Dalegowski, AZ Glen Renell, AZ

Cody DeLong, AZ Dave Santillanes, CO

Jake Gaedtke, CO Dan Schultz, CA

Linda Glover Gooch, AZ Julia Seelos, CA

Gregory Hull, AZ Williamson Tapia, AZ

Michael Chesley Johnson, AZ Rick Wheeler, AZ

Sam Jones, AZ Jim Wodark, CA

Kolb Studio is located along the Rim Trail in Grand Canyon Village, 200 yards west of Bright Angel Lodge.