Originally from the small town of Long Beach, Mississippi, Peggy Lanning began her long-standing career as a renowned art gallery owner by selling Native American jewelry from the trunk of her car. Today, she is a successful female entrepreneur – the owner of two prominent galleries in Sedona, Arizona, surrounded by the breathtaking red rocks of this distinctive arts colony.

After her youngest child went off to kindergarten Lanning set up a jewelry counter within a friend’s shop in southern Arizona, within a few years opening her own space called Turquoise Tortoise. When the northern Arizona arts colony of Sedona planned an exclusive new gallery center, Lanning secured herself a voice as the smallest investor of thirty and moved the gallery to its current location at Hozho in the heart of the Gallery District. Turquoise Tortoise Gallery, founded in 1971, continues its tradition of representing top Native American artists – and now Southwest artists too.

When the work of distinguished artist Alfred Rogoway came to Lanning’s attention she felt determined to accommodate the many fine artists who happened not to be Native American. Within the year Lanning Gallery, founded in 1986, had opened across the hall; its reputation as the finest Classic and Contemporary gallery in Sedona is irrefutable.

A philosophy Peggy Lanning has always believed is, “You have to crawl before you can walk and walk before you can run.” In 2007, Lanning received the Visionary Award from the National Association of Women Business Owners' (NAWBO-Sedona) Third Annual Entrepreneurial Excellence Awards. As a founding member of the Sedona Gallery Association and having sat on the board of Sedona's Chamber of Commerce and Focus Future for Sedona, Lanning has helped determine the direction of this one-of-a-kind arts colony.