News & Events AZ

Artists & Makers Studios – Oro Valley, AZ

Jimmy Descant
Arizona, Mexico, and Clipped Americans

September 13, 2025 – October 25, 2025

(Oro Valley, AZ) – Artists and Makers Studios is excited to announce its upcoming exhibition showcasing the incredible talent and creativity of Jimmy Descant. This exhibition features a bold selection of assembled sculptures and vintage clipboard works created between 2019 and 2025 in the Sonoran Desert. In his ongoing series “The Shape of Arizona/Mexico,” Descant builds his socio-political sculptures live, often accompanied by musicians, poets, and performers, to provoke conversation around U.S. migrant policies of the past, present, and future, and the enduring impact on Native lands and communities. Using vintage found objects wired, nailed, and screwed into salvaged plywood, he constructs layered commentaries on resistance, environment, and history. His “Clipped Americans” ongoing series of vintage clipboards, book covers, and small found are contemporary takes on the West, Manifest Destiny, and exploring the destruction and gains that American manufacturing caused and benefited from for the last 150 years.

Jimmy Descant
Arizona, Mexico, and Clipped Americans
Opening Reception
12:00 PM – 3:00 PM, Saturday, September 13, 2025

Artists & Makers Studios – Oro Valley
Steam Pump Village
11061 North Oracle Road, Suite 150
Oro Valley, AZ 85737

Viewing hours are 10:00am – 4:00pm, Thursday-Saturday, and Sundays by chance or appointment. Artists & Makers Studios on Parklawn Drive in Rockville, established in October of 2014 by artist and arts community builder Judith HeartSong, is a 13,000 sq. ft. facility is home to 87 artists, as well as student artists. Artists & Makers Studios – Oro Valley, AZ is a four-year-old jewel box location with talented Resident Artists, 3,575 sq. ft. of studios, galleries, and flex-classroom space. Newly constructed two-story 9,508 sq. ft. studio space in San Gabriel, CA for Artists & Makers Studios’ third location is touring now, with construction set to begin shortly for the three-story 13,902 sq. ft. location in North Hollywood, CA. A&M Studios is dedicated to providing a supportive and vibrant environment for artists to realize their creative goals – through studio practice, collaboration, education, opportunities, networking and connecting with the community beyond our doors.

Artists & Makers Studios – Oro Valley, AZ

Melinda Kane
Colors in the Desert
June 28, 2025 – August 30, 2025

(Oro Valley, AZ) – Artists and Makers Studios is excited to announce its upcoming exhibition showcasing the incredible talent and creativity of Melinda Kane. As a dedicated Tucson native, Melinda’s work explores the bizarre beauty of the Sonoran Desert. She enjoys highlighting the brilliant colors, unique views, and interesting native flora and fauna that can be found all around us here in Southern Arizona. Using playful brushstrokes and vibrant colors in either acrylic or gouache, Melinda aims to highlight the whimsy found in common desert scenery. When she’s not painting or enjoying time with her family, this artist can often be found snapping photos of the world around her to inspire future works of art. Many of her paintings are based on photos she has taken on hikes, in her neighborhood, or in unexpected nature spots around town.

Melinda Kane
Colors in the Desert
Opening Reception
12:00 PM – 3:00 PM, Saturday, June 28, 2025

Artists & Makers Studios – Oro Valley
Steam Pump Village
11061 North Oracle Road, Suite 150
Oro Valley, AZ 85737

Viewing hours are 10:00am – 4:00pm, Thursday-Saturday, and Sundays by chance or appointment. Artists & Makers Studios on Parklawn Drive in Rockville, established in October of 2014 by artist and arts community builder Judith HeartSong, is a 13,000 sq. ft. facility is home to 87 artists, as well as student artists. Artists & Makers Studios – Oro Valley, AZ is a four-year-old jewel box location with talented Resident Artists, 3,575 sq. ft. of studios, galleries, and flex-classroom space. Newly constructed two-story 9,508 sq. ft. studio space in San Gabriel, CA for Artists & Makers Studios’ third location is touring now, with construction set to begin shortly for the three-story 13,902 sq. ft. location in North Hollywood, CA. A&M Studios is dedicated to providing a supportive and vibrant environment for artists to realize their creative goals – through studio practice, collaboration, education, opportunities, networking and connecting with the community beyond our doors.

Artists & Makers Studios – Oro Valley, AZ

Michael B. Schwartz
Recent Works
May 10, 2025 – June 21, 2025

(Oro Valley, AZ) – Artists and Makers Studios is excited to announce its upcoming exhibition showcasing the incredible talent and creativity of Michael B. Schwartz. Michael B Schwartz (MFA) is a conceptual artist with a focus on painting and drawing. His prolific career spans decades, producing a range of works including drawings, murals, paintings and installations, consistently seeking to challenge himself and engage audiences. This collection brings together a group of recent figurative and landscape paintings, all rooted in the foundational practice of drawing. Each piece began as a sketch, allowing form and narrative to emerge organically. The figurative works in particular offer curious and whimsical stories layered with hidden figures and subtle clues, inviting viewers to look closely and uncover, explore, and interpret the subtle narratives woven throughout the collection.

Artists & Makers Studios – Oro Valley
Steam Pump Village
11061 North Oracle Road, Suite 150
Oro Valley, AZ 85737

Viewing hours are 10:00am – 4:00pm, Thursday-Saturday. Artists & Makers Studios on Parklawn Drive in Rockville, established in October of 2014 by artist and arts community builder Judith HeartSong, is a 13,000 sq. ft. facility is home to 87 artists, as well as student artists. Artists & Makers Studios – Oro Valley, AZ is a four-year-old jewel box location with talented Resident Artists, 3,575 sq. ft. of studios, galleries, and flex-classroom space. Newly constructed two-story 9,508 sq. ft. studio space in San Gabriel, CA for Artists & Makers Studios’ third location is touring now, with construction set to begin shortly for the three-story 13,902 sq. ft. location in North Hollywood, CA. A&M Studios is dedicated to providing a supportive and vibrant environment for artists to realize their creative goals – through studio practice, collaboration, education, opportunities, networking and connecting with the community beyond our doors.

Artists & Makers Studios – Oro Valley, AZ
Carolyn Kay
Revised Budget
March 8th, 2025 – April 19th, 2025

Born in Dallas, Texas, in 1967, Carolyn’s father, a professional gambler, moved the family to Las Vegas, Nevada, in 1974. She left Las Vegas after high school to attend college in Southern California, where she majored in economics and minored in art. Her finance-related career has since been in roles in nonprofit organizations. Carolyn’s early artwork focused primarily on figurative painting. In 2001, she earned a Master of Fine Arts degree from Claremont Graduate University, where her work transitioned to more conceptual images and broadened into different media. After relocating from New York City to Arizona in 2013, she put her art practice on hiatus until 2024. Carolyn now resides in Oro Valley, Arizona, and is a resident artist at Artist & Makers Studios. Her drawings, paintings, photographs, installations, assemblages, sculptures, and videos explore the viewer’s interactions with images of money, accounting, numbers, and gambling. Carolyn’s experience of growing up in Las Vegas and as a financial professional, as well as her everyday encounters with money, are the source material for a body of work that explores perceptions and expectations of value, including the parallels between the value systems of art and money. Her intent is for the viewer to engage with the aesthetic calculations at the intersection of their own monetary traditions, emotions, and lived experiences. 

Carolyn Kay
Revised Budget

Opening Reception
12:00 PM – 3:00 PM, Saturday, March 8th, 2025

Artists & Makers Studios – Oro Valley
Steam Pump Village
11061 North Oracle Road, Suite 150
Oro Valley, AZ 85737

Viewing hours are Thursday – Saturday 10-4pm, or by chance or appointment. Artists & Makers Studios on Parklawn Drive in Rockville, established in October 2014 by artist and arts community builder Judith HeartSong, is a 13,000 sq. ft. facility is home to 87 artists, and 80 student artists. Artists & Makers Studios – Oro Valley, AZ is a four-year-old jewel box location with talented Resident Artists, 3,575 sq ft of studios, galleries, and flex-classroom space. Construction is currently underway in San Gabriel, CA for Artists & Makers Studios’ third location, with construction set to begin shortly for the fourth location in North Hollywood, CA. A&M Studios is dedicated to providing a supportive and vibrant environment for artists to realize their creative goals – through studio practice, collaboration, education, opportunities, networking and connecting with the community beyond our doors.  

Artists & Makers Studios – Oro Valley, AZ
Kaylee Dillon
A Silver Reverie
January 11th, 2025 – February 15th, 2025

(Oro Valley, AZ) – Artists & Makers Studios in Oro Valley is pleased to announce the new gallery exhibition by its new manager, Kaylee Dillon, A Silver Reverie.  A Silver Reverie is a collection of monochrome Sonoran Desert landscapes, painted with acrylic on silver foil paper, capturing the luminous magic of winter light. Silver Reverie is the sister show to Dillon’s radiant summer exhibit, Golden Embrace, which celebrated the golden glow of the desert’s summer light through gold foil paper as a canvas. Together, these two exhibits form a poetic meditation on the shifting seasons, as told through the interplay of light and landscape. “In Silver Reverie, I wanted to explore how the cool, silvery light of winter transforms the Sonoran Desert,” says Dillon. “The way the moonlight glints across frosted cactus spines. The subdued shimmer of a desert sunrise. I wanted to capture the magic of those fleeting moments.” As the new manager of Artists & Makers Studios – Oro Valley, Dillon brings her passion for art and community to this inspiring creative space. Her exhibit reflects the ethos of the studio: a dedication to showcasing artistry that connects people to place. Experience the desert’s beauty in its most ethereal form, where shadow and light converge to tell stories of season and spirit.

Kaylee Dillon
A Silver Reverie

Opening Reception
12:00 PM – 3:00 PM, Saturday, January 11th, 2025

Artists & Makers Studios – Oro Valley
Steam Pump Village
11061 North Oracle Road, Suite 150
Oro Valley, AZ 85737

Viewing hours are Thursday – Saturday 10-4pm, or by chance or appointment. Artists & Makers Studios on Parklawn Drive in Rockville, established in October 2014 by artist and arts community builder Judith HeartSong, is a 13,000 sq. ft. facility is home to 87 artists, and 80 student artists. Artists & Makers Studios – Oro Valley, AZ is a four-year-old jewel box location with talented Resident Artists, 3,575 sq ft of studios, galleries, and flex-classroom space. Construction is currently underway in San Gabriel, CA for Artists & Makers Studios’ third location, with construction set to begin shortly for the fourth location in North Hollywood, CA. A&M Studios is dedicated to providing a supportive and vibrant environment for artists to realize their creative goals – through studio practice, collaboration, education, opportunities, networking and connecting with the community beyond our doors.  

Artists & Makers Studios – Oro Valley, AZ
V. Highton
The Verdant Series
November 16th, 2024 – January 4th, 2025

(Oro Valley, AZ) – Artists & Makers Studios in Oro Valley is pleased to announce the new gallery exhibition by V. Highton, The Verdant Series.  The Verdant Series started as an expression of the monsoon season into a painting practice that describes both seasons and human emotion. Highton’s oil and cold wax paintings depict the transient nature of weather and moods—hot and dry, wet and verdant. Each piece is purposely open to interpretation, introspection and meditation. The works can be appreciated as a group or individually—traveling through a variety of landscapes and feelings. V. Highton studied the arts in Bellingham, Washington prior to moving to Arizona. Prior to travelling to Tucson, Highton worked at the Phoenix Art Museum and the Arizona Alliance for the Arts Education. In Tucson, Highton began painting with a group of artists – the experience of which has been a special source of artistic enrichment. V. Highton has shown work in multiple shows at Tohono Chul and the gallery’s annual fundraiser. The artist lives with their spouse next to a wide wash. They are frequently bossed around by a chihuahua named Flora.

 V. Highton
The Verdant Series

Opening Reception
12:00 PM – 3:00 PM, Saturday, November 16th, 2024
Second Chance Reception – Meet the Artist
1:00 PM – 3 PM, Saturday December 14th, 2024

Artists & Makers Studios – Oro Valley
Steam Pump Village
11061 North Oracle Road, Suite 150
Oro Valley, AZ 85737

Viewing hours are Thursday – Friday 10am – 4pm, , or by chance or appointment. Artists & Makers Studios on Parklawn Drive in Rockville, established in October 2014 by artist and arts community builder Judith HeartSong, is a 13,000 sq. ft. facility is home to 87 artists, and 80 student artists. Artists & Makers Studios – Oro Valley, AZ is a four-year-old jewel box location with talented Resident Artists, 3,575 sq ft of studios, galleries, and flex-classroom space. Construction is currently underway in San Gabriel, CA for Artists & Makers Studios’ third location, with construction set to begin shortly for the fourth location in North Hollywood, CA. A&M Studios is dedicated to providing a supportive and vibrant environment for artists to realize their creative goals – through studio practice, collaboration, education, opportunities, networking and connecting with the community beyond our doors.  

Artists & Makers Studios – Oro Valley, AZ
Joe Merrell
The Art of Dying Well
September 14th – November 2nd, 2024

(Oro Valley, AZ) – Artists & Makers Studios in Oro Valley is pleased to announce the new gallery exhibition by Joe Merrell, The Art of Dying Well.  Joe Merrell was born and raised in the Pacific Northwest. He studied philosophy and English literature at the Evergreen State College in Olympia, Washington and earned an MFA at CalArts in Valencia, California. Currently based in Los Angeles, he makes art in various mediums – video, print, sculpture, scent, installation – for exhibition in galleries, festivals,  museums in North America, Europe, and most recently New Zealand. The Art of Dying Well features a range of work exploring themes of perception, the supernatural, life and death. This includes a 3d-printed wall hanging, sculpture, edition prints, video, as well as two artist-made perfumes available for purchase in limited quantities. This show in the Oro Valley is Merrell’s first in Arizona.

Joe Merrell
The Art of Dying Well

Opening Reception
12:00 PM – 3:00 PM, Saturday, September 14th, 2024

Artists & Makers Studios – Oro Valley
Steam Pump Village
11061 North Oracle Road, Suite 150
Oro Valley, AZ 85737

Viewing hours are 10:00am – 4:00pm, Thursday-Saturday, and Sundays by chance or appointment.

Artists & Makers Studios – Oro Valley, AZ

Mark Hamilton
With & Without Light

July 13th – August 31st, 2024

(Oro Valley, AZ) – Artists & Makers Studios in Oro Valley is pleased to announce the new gallery exhibition of mixed media sculpture and painting by Mark Hamilton When Materials Collide and Decide: Part Two. Mark Hamilton’s work is based on using repurposed materials. This provides a direction that he finds challenging and very rewarding. The act of selecting components that work together when made into a single structure speaks to his aesthetic sensibilities. Hamilton also enjoys the interaction between metal, glass and neon. The different properties, functions, colors, textures and shapes placed into juxtaposition results in designs that are very satisfying to him. The neon illumination brings fire and power, providing another dimension to the sculpture’s impact.

Mark Hamilton
With & Without Light

Opening Reception
12:00 PM – 3:00 PM, Saturday, July 13th, 2024

Artists & Makers Studios – Oro Valley
Steam Pump Village
11061 North Oracle Road, Suite 150
Oro Valley, AZ 85737

Viewing hours are Thursday 10am – 4pm, Friday 12pm – 6pm and Saturday 10am – 4pm, or by chance or appointment. Artists & Makers Studios on Parklawn Drive in Rockville, established in October 2014 by artist and arts community builder Judith HeartSong, is a 13,000 sq. ft. facility is home to 87 artists, and 80 student artists. Artists & Makers Studios – Oro Valley, AZ is a two-year-old jewel box location with talented Resident Artists, 3,575 sq ft of studios, galleries, and flex-classroom space. Construction is currently underway in San Gabriel, CA for Artists & Makers Studios’ third location, with construction set to begin shortly for the fourth location in North Hollywood, CA. A&M Studios is dedicated to providing a supportive and vibrant environment for artists to realize their creative goals – through studio practice, collaboration, education, opportunities, networking and connecting with the community beyond our doors.