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Jackson Hole News & Guide
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Mariam Diehl’s favorite part of hosting the annual exhibition “Bright and Beautiful IX” at Diehl Gallery is seeing her roster of artists in conversation with one another. Over 70 works, from contemporary realism to abstract, from bronze to glass to multimedia, will adorn the gallery space on King Street to bring 2025 to a close starting Thursday.
“Bright and Beautiful” is one of the few moments each year when the entire ecosystem of the gallery — from emerging voices to established masters — join together. The show becomes a kind of annual pulse-check, not only on individual creative trajectories but on the “collective aesthetic energy of the year,” the gallery owner told the News&Guide.
Diehl said this year’s exhibition program was marked by artists “pushing deeper into craft, materiality and emotional resonance.”
“Across the board, we’re seeing collectors gravitate toward highly tactile surfaces, intimate scale, and work that carries a sense of optimism or grounding,” she said. “There’s been a real desire for pieces that feel both visually elevated and personally meaningful, and that sensibility runs throughout this year’s ‘Bright and Beautiful.’”
Diehl said the art market overall continues to reward artists who combine strong technique with a distinctive, authentic voice — something she said the gallery roster excelled at in 2024 and 2025.
Many of the artists in this year’s exhibition did not have solo shows at the gallery in the past year and the annual exhibition is a chance to reintroduce artists, “and to spotlight rising voices whose work expands the gallery’s range,” Diehl added. “It’s one of the reasons the show feels so fresh each year.”
One of Diehl’s longtime artists, Hunt Slonem, has taken on some additional real estate in the gallery, a.k.a the “Hop Shop,” with pieces that according to Diehl, are very “giftable.”
“We’ve always championed fine art in all its forms, and in recent years we’ve expanded our functional art offerings to include books and beautifully crafted sculptural décor, design objects, and smaller scale works that make art more accessible for a range of collectors,” she said.
Diehl says there’s something about living with art in everyday ways, “not just on the walls, but on your table, your shelves, or as part of a holiday tradition,” that adds a sense of wonder to the mundane. Slonem’s iconic animals can be found on trays, glassware and are even imprinted on notecards.
In contrast to Slonem’s neon palette, Jim Budish’s bronzes embrace the more tender side of wildlife depictions.
“His forms are simplified yet deeply expressive, and he has a remarkable instinct for distilling an animal’s personality into a single gesture — a tilt of the head, a subtle shift of weight,” Diehl said. “His work radiates warmth and approachability.”
Juxtaposing Budish in the show, Theodore Gall explores a more psychological and symbolic visual representation. Diehl said, “His animal forms often function as metaphors for human emotion, and he isn’t afraid to stretch anatomy or narrative to evoke something more internal.”
She said seeing the two artists side by side is “fascinating.”
“Budish gives us the essence of the animal; Gall gives us the inner life of the animal. Both are emotional, but in completely different registers.”
Artists that seem to augment the sparkle of the holidays are also in display, like Susan Goldsmith, whose work is a layered composition of photography, painting, gold leaf and resin rendering surfaces illuminated from within each canvas.
Diehl said Goldsmith’s compositions are less botanical studies than they are meditations on beauty, luminosity and memory.
The gallery owner called the show “a meaningful close to the year” and a moment to celebrate creativity, community, “and the enduring power of art to bring people together.”
Diehl called it a privilege to steward her artist roster. “The holiday show is a reminder of why we do what we do.”
“Bright and Beautiful IX” is on display through Jan. 10 with an opening reception on from 5-8 p.m. Saturday.