Phoenix Art Museum to present new exhibition of desert-landscape etchings by American painter and printmaker George Elbert Burr 

Oct, 29, 2025

American and Western American ArtAmerican and Western American Art

Phoenix Art Museum to present new exhibition of desert-landscape etchings by American painter and printmaker George Elbert Burr 

Opening November 2025 with the premiere of the Museum’s renovated James K. Ballinger Wing, George Elbert Burr: The Desert Etchings illuminates the prolific artist’s career, technical mastery, and under-recognized impact

PHOENIX (October 27, 2025) – On November 28, 2025, Phoenix Art Museum premieres George Elbert Burr: The Desert Etchings as part of the reopening celebrations of the institution’s Art of the Americas + Europe galleries in the newly dedicated James K. Ballinger Wing. Featuring 50 outstanding prints from the Collection of Phoenix Art Museum, the exhibition examines Burr’s practice and legacy, grounded in a commitment to depicting the high desert landscapes of Arizona, Colorado, and Southern California.  

“Phoenix Art Museum is excited to present an incredible selection of works by George Elbert Burr as part the historic renovation of the James K. Ballinger Wing,” said Jeremy Mikolajczak, the Museum’s Sybil Harrington Director and CEO. “George Elbert Burr: The Desert Etchings will be presented in the Museum’s Orme Lewis Gallery, which is now dedicated to ongoing installations of prints and drawings—considered one of the largest yet least exhibited parts of the PhxArt Collection. Fittingly, the exhibition honors not just the desert landscapes of our region and the American West but also the legacy of an artist with deep ties to the history of Phoenix Art Museum.”

American painter and printmaker George Elbert Burr (1859–1939) was born in the Midwest and moved to New York City in 1888 to establish his career as a traveling illustrator. His work was published in popular magazines such as  Harper’s and  Frank Leslie’s Weekly, and in 1891, he served as illustrator and photographer on President Benjamin Harrison’s Western tour of the United States. After extensive travels in Europe, health challenges in 1906 led Burr to Denver, where he devoted himself to printmaking. In the winters, however, the artist visited the Southwest to make sketches, from which he produced his acclaimed “Desert Set.” In 1924, Burr moved to Phoenix and over time became deeply involved in the arts community. He eventually served as an instrumental figure in the founding of the Phoenix Fine Art Association and the community-building efforts that led to the establishment of Phoenix Art Museum in 1959. 

Throughout his prolific career, Burr created approximately 25,000 works from an estimated 367 plates. Despite such an extensive body of work—demonstrative of technical innovation and mastery—the artist remains less recognized than his European predecessors, including Albrecht Durër and Rembrandt van Rijn. George Elbert Burr: The Desert Etchingsoffers Arizona audiences the opportunity to discover a wide selection of Burr’s finely detailed prints that skillfully render resolutely American subjects.

“Burr was a technical genius capable of creating myriad effects through a variety of printmaking techniques,” said Olga Viso, the Museum’s Selig Family Chief Curator and Director of Curatorial Affairs, who curated the exhibition. “He could render the tiniest burrs and spikes of a barrel cactus or ocotillo branch with mind-bending exactitude while capturing the ethereal atmospheric conditions of a twilight sky, a sandstorm, cumulous clouds, or dirt devils moving slowly across the landscape. Visitors will be able to see the vast range of Burr’s impressive production as well as get up close to inspect individual prints with a magnifying glass.” 

For high-resolution imagery and to request interviews, please contact the Communications Office at press@phxart.org. 

About the Exhibition

The inaugural installation of the James K. Ballinger Wing, an initiative honoring the historic collections of Phoenix Art Museum and the visionary leadership of Director Emeritus James K. Ballinger, was made possible by generous gifts from the Virginia M. Ullman Foundation and the Kemper & Ethel Marley Foundation. Additional support was provided by the Carl and Marilynn Thoma Foundation, Cathie Lemon, the Men’s Arts Council, and Harry and Rose Papp. 

George Elbert Burr: The Desert Etchings is organized by Phoenix Art Museum and curated by Olga Viso, the Selig Family Chief Curator and Director of Curatorial Affairs.

All exhibitions at Phoenix Art Museum are underwritten by the Phoenix Art Museum Exhibition Excellence Fund, founded by The Opatrny Family Foundation with additional major support provided by Joan Cremin. 

Entrance into George Elbert Burr: The Desert Etchings  is included in general admission for the public. Admission is free for Museum Members and youth aged 5 and younger. Visitors may also enjoy reduced admission to the exhibition during voluntary-donation times on Wednesdays from 3 – 8 pm, made possible by SRP and City of Phoenix, and First Fridays from 5 – 8 pm, made possible by APS and Lexus, with additional support from Arizona Community Foundation. For a full breakdown of general admission prices and hours, see phxart.org/visit/.

About Phoenix Art Museum

Since 1959, Phoenix Art Museum (PhxArt) has engaged millions of visitors with the art of our region and world. Located in Phoenix’s Central Corridor, PhxArt creates spaces of exchange and belonging for all audiences through dynamic exhibitions, collections, and experiences with art. Each year, 300,000 guests on average engage with critically acclaimed national and international exhibitions and the Museum’s collection of more than 21,000 works of American and Western American, Asian, European, Latin American, modern, and contemporary art and fashion, along with vibrant photography exhibitions made possible through the Museum’s landmark partnership with the Center for Creative Photography at the University of Arizona in Tucson. PhxArt also presents live performances, outstanding examples of global cinema, arts-education programs and workshops, a monthly live-music series, and more for the community. To learn more about Phoenix Art Museum, visit phxart.org, or call 602.257.1880.