Photo highlights from the fall season

Who didn’t ooh and ahh over the Aether and Hemera installation “Voyage” on the Arizona Canal in November? Photo by Deborah Ross.

In an astounding testament to art’s place in social practice, Ann Morton created “Ground Cover” on a vacant lot in downtown Phoenix. The two-day display consisted of thousands of knitted and quilted squares, assembled into blankets that are now headed to Phoenix’s homeless population. Aerial photo courtesy of Ann Morton.

This oil painting by Lisa Albinger is from a delightful group show called “A Little Religion in Your Shopping” at Modified Arts in Phoenix in December and early January. Photo courtesy of Modified Arts.

The amazing glass art of John Kiley is on display at LewAllen Galleries in Scottsdale through January 12. This is “Spherical Eclipse,” image courtesy of LewAllen Galleries.

The quietly evocative wilderness photographs of Debra Bloomfield are part of “See Hear Feel” in the Norton Gallery of the Phoenix Art Museum through March. This is “Wilderness #02076-8-7.” Photo courtesy of Phoenix Art Museum.

The prints of Jake Early were on prominent display in the bell tower near the Scottsdale Museum of Contemporary Arts, part of a Scottsdale Public Art initiative. Photo by Sean Deckert.

Dean Bradshaw’s “Mountain Treasures” was one of many autumnal odes in a solo show at the Marshall Gallery in downtown Scottsdale in October. Photo courtesy of the gallery.

Phoenix’s public art program is having a banner year. This is part of a yearlong display in the Melrose shopping district and shows “Ocotillo Snag” by Christopher Colville. Photo by Deborah Ross.

Andrew Schoultz’s “Holy Vessel,” composed of acrylic paint, gold leaf and a stretched American flag, was part of a stunning group show “Gold Rush” at Bentley in December. Photo courtesy of Bentley Gallery.

The esteemed Japanese art photographer Masao Yamamoto, whose work is still up at SMoCA, was featured in October in a Lisa Sette solo show. This is “1319.” Photo courtesy of Lisa Sette Gallery.

Featured photo: One of many dazzling sights from “Chihuly in the Garden,” glass sculptures by Dale Chihuly, at the Desert Botanical Garden. Photo by Deborah Ross.

I bid farewell to 2013, but not without a backward glance at the rich bounty of art in Phoenix, Scottsdale and the Valley over the last few months.

Not every wonderful show received a writeup here at the ol’ blog or at visualartsource.com, so I hope the photographs above can somewhat recompense, even though I lack images for all the exhibitions I visited. (Please note that the images here cannot be reproduced without express permission from me or from the institution that kindly offered them.)

Probably my personal highlight was Fall for the Arts and Canal Convergence in downtown Scottsdale in November. Here’s hoping for continued success for those two endeavors as they enter their third year in 2014. See Spotlight: Scottsdale in Art Ltd. magazine for details.

And may I mention a few shows that are still up, especially for those of you who have resolved to see more art in 2014? (Good for you!)

— At the ASU Art Museum, Tempe, through January 18, 2014: Herberger Institute for Design and the Arts School of Art Biennial Faculty Exhibitions, including work by Forrest Solis, Mark Klett, Susan Beiner and Binh Danh.

— At the Phoenix Art Museum, Phoenix, through April 20, 2014: “Read My Pins: The Madeline Albright Collection,” which is not only a glittery showcase of jewelry making, but also a survey of how this esteemed stateswoman gets her message across through wearable art, such as the mini-missile brooch she wore during Mideast summits.

— At the Heard Museum, Phoenix, through March 3, 2014: “Georgia O’Keeffe in New Mexico: Architecture, Katsinam and the Land.” A refreshing survey of O’Keeffe that is on a limited U.S. tour.

— At the Desert Botanical Garden, Phoenix, through May 18, 2014: “Chihuly in the Garden,” for breathtaking installations by Dale Chihuly, the Studio Glass movement’s preeminent artist.