ANIMAL TALK  While growing up on a farm in Montana, Dixie Jewett came to know horses well. During a welding class that had captured her imagination, she  eventually merged her love for these animals with her strong interest in art. Steel became her medium, and Jewett began fashioning horses from it. Ultimately, she turned to found objects as a way to make her true artistic statement. The artist creates her horse sculptures from broken tools, rusted car parts, farm equipment and myriad odds and ends. The three-dimensional works typically take several months to complete, with each one taking a unique form.   Jewett’s painstaking work with forge, torch and welding rod lends unique character to every piece, as seen here in “It’s Show Time,” a steel sculpture that measures 23" high x 28" wide x 7" deep. The artist’s work is on display in “Mena-gerie,” Sept. 4-13 at Lanning Gallery in Sedona. The show focuses on animals rendered in various mediums—from paintings to steel sculpture. It opens with a reception from 5 to 8 p.m. Sept. 4 as part of the Sedona Gallery Association’s 1st Friday event. For more information, visit lanninggallery.com or call (928) 282-6865.

Arizona Science Center—600 E. Washington St., Phoenix, azscience.org, (602) 716-2000. “Lego Castle Adventures,” through Sept. 6; and “Robots: The Interactive Exhibition,” Sept. 27-Feb. 14. Grownups can enjoy the center with “people their own size” during a free Adults’ Night Out, which takes place from 5:30 to 9 p.m. Sept. 4.

Arizona State University Art
Museum—Nelson Fine Arts Center, Tempe, (480) 965-ARTS. “Figuring Prominently,” through Sept. 19; “I Never Saw So Clearly,” through Sept. 19; “Hits From the ’60s & ’70s,” through Oct. 31; and “Defining Sustainability: From the ASU Art Museum Collection,” Sept. 19-Jan. 30, 2010.

BRIO Fine Arts Center—8340 E. Raintree Dr., Scottsdale, briofinearts.com, (480) 941-8310. “Double Vision,” a juried show that examines traditional and digital photography as fine art, opens with a reception for the artists from 6 to 8 p.m. Sept. 19, and continues on display through Oct. 2.

Colonial Frontiers—244 S. Park Ave., Tucson, colonialfrontiers.com, (520) 622-7400. Amazon utilitarian pottery from the Shipibo Indians of Peru, circa 1960s, is on exhibit through Sept. 30.

Colores—7100 Main St., Scottsdale, (480) 947-1489. “La Buena Vida,” Sept. 3-30, focuses on the art and style of Linda Carter Holman, with her original paintings and limited-edition prints displayed among unique merchandise and antique Asian furniture. Landscapes by Alix Stefan, animal paintings and prints by Mitch Henderson and Western figurative art by Thom Ross also are on exhibit.

Deer Valley Rock Art Center—3711 W. Deer Valley Rd., Phoenix, dvrac.asu.edu, (602) 582-8007. “The Rock Art Paintings of Hueco Tanks,” through Sept. 1.

DeGrazia Gallery in the Sun—6300 N. Swan Rd., Tucson, degrazia.org, (520) 299-9191, Ext. 112. “DeGrazia: 100 Years, 100 Works,” which commemorates the centennial birth date of renowned Arizona artist Ted DeGrazia, is on display through Jan. 15.

Desert Artisans’ Gallery—6536 E. Tanque Verde Rd., Tucson, desertartisans.com, (520) 722-4412. “Summer Melange,” through Sept. 13, features works by Tucson-area artists Sharon Bertrand, Myrna Bonaccorso, Al Christensen, Judy Faitsch, Susan Libby and Emely McConkey. “Blue Sky Essence” opens Sept. 15, with an artists’ reception from 5 to 7 p.m. Sept. 18, and includes works by local Tucson artists David Brown, Joan DiGiovanni, Paddie Flaherty, Darlene LeClair, Gretchen Huff and Tad Lamb. The show continues on display through Dec. 6.