CARVING STONE
ONE OF Santa Fe’s most established and well-known galleries, Nedra Matteucci Galleries, will open a show by the renowned Native sculptor Doug Hyde on Aug. 12, Doug Hyde: Collection of Unique Stone Sculptures. The show will remain on view until Sept. 2.
Hyde is of Nez Perce, Assiniboine, and Chippewa heritage and began his artistic career working in stone before adding bronze to his repertoire. While he still works extensively in bronze, stone is the material that he feels the most attuned to. Hyde says that since he was young, he’s felt stones talking to him, telling him what they want to be.
A winner of multiple national art awards including the Award for Sculpture from the Autry National Center of the American West, Hyde’s work can be found in the Smithsonian’s Cultural Resource Center, the Heard Museum, and the Museum of the Southwest, among others.
His sculpture When the Dance is Over in black steatite depicts a Native couple at the end of an evening, standing together in front of an old pickup. Hyde often carves animal subjects, as well, as in Watching Shooting Stars. Here, a bear is seated on what looks like a rocky outcropping, presumably taking in the beauty of a dark night sky.
Visitors to Nedra Matteucci Galleries can also take in works by the gallery’s many other historical and contemporary artists. The current owner, Nedra Matteucci, purchased the gallery from its original owner, Forrest Fenn, in 1988. Fenn’s gallery was widely acclaimed. Matteucci made numerous significant improvements and the gallery continues to be renowned for a tradition of excellence.
For one, Matteucci established the gallery’s backyard—originally, the gallery had been a
