Artists 4 Rockport Fundraiser Event

"Adolescents" (pastel, 24x24) donated

The Art on 12 Gallery, at 13811 Ranch Road 12, Wimberley TX, and other local galleries will be offering artworks at the bargain price of $100 at a Friday evening reception and on Saturday and Sunday, October 28 and 29 only. All proceeds go to Rockport recovery. 

 Find some of my paintings at this generous event. Don't miss it! Click the image below for a closer read, or visit www.arton12.com or the Artists 4 Rockport facebook event page!

Wink - day 14

 "Wink"  (pastel, 14x11 inches)  Donated

Day 14 of my 30 paintings in 30 days of November!

This is my donation to the ACT (Artists Changing Tomorrow) Invitational Exhibition 2016.
Coming February 27th, hundreds of donated paintings will be on a silent auction. Organized by Arts for Rural Texas (ARTS)

As school systems continue to remove more and more art programs from its curriculum, ARTS seeks to exert efforts to maintain quality art experiences for today's youth and for today's communities in general. It is the goal of ACT to grow beyond its initial region and to spread through the country and world, enriching the lives of all it touches.

A New Day

"A New Day"  (pastel, 20x10 inches)  $800

Finally got back in the studio! Here's a little cutie I've been dying to paint for a long while, thanks to a friend I met in a workshop in south Texas earlier this year who very generously shared this photo with me. (Thanks Pam!) I was instantly captivated by this little one's blue eyes and dainty front hoof.

This painting will be with me this weekend at the Rockport Art Festival (unless she sells before that..)

On another note, the 100@100 Event on Saturday at the Wimberley Texas Community Center exceeded all expectations! Over $40,000 was raised for the Barnabas Connection, benefiting the Wimberley flood victims. (See my posts from last week, if you're new to my blog.) The Wimberley Valley Art League members pulled off an amazing organizational accomplishment in a very short amount of time, and deserve the gratitude of all of Wimberley for the success of their efforts. As I overheard one member saying to another "This is what this Art League was created for!"

Meanwhile, here are some progress shots of "A New Day":

Thanks for watching! Please share!

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Creek Bend (and Benefit for the Wimberley Flood Victims)

"Creek Bend" (watercolor and pastel,  12x9 inches)  Donated

See this painting and more than 250 other works of art at the Wimberley Valley Art League 100@100 Benefit this Saturday, June 27! The event is at the Wimberley Texas Community Center from 2-6pm. Most works will be available for $100. There will also be a Premier Silent Auction for more valuable works, and tables full of unique items valued at under $100.

All proceeds will go to the Barnabas Connection for the victims of the recent flooding in Wimberley. Come on out for a one-in-a-lifetime chance at these artworks! Wimberley needs you! (Scroll down for some pics of the show!)

 I stopped in this morning for some quick shots: the show looks great, and ready for lots of guests!!

Merilda Braiding (For the Wimberley Flood Victims)

"Merilda Braiding"  (pastel, 10x8 inches)  Donated

Another old portrait that I've donated to the Wimberley Valley Art League 100@100 Benefit this Saturday, June 27. The event is at the Wimberley Texas Community Center from 2-6pm. Close to 250 works of art will be had for donations of $100 +/- ! There will be a silent auction for works of a higher value; this one might be included! All proceeds will go to the Barnabas Connection for the victims of the recent flooding in Wimberley.

This one doesn't quite fit into my Renaissance Portrait series because there's no sunlight on her. She was sitting in the shade, so the light is more subtle. And I just now realized that I had done some touch-ups on this piece before another show last year, and forgot to get a new photo of the changes! It was mostly to soften the harsh edges of the braids and other areas, but I guess you'll have to come to the show on Saturday to see how much Merilda has improved!

See many of the donated works so far on the Wimberley Valley Art League Facebook Page, and all together on this Pinterest Board. Check back! More works added daily through this Friday!

Before The Dance (for Wimberley Flood Victims)

"Before The Dance"  (pastel, 18x12 inches)  Donated

This was a portrait done from life in the Wednesday evening Portrait Group at the Coppini Academy of Fine Art years ago when I lived in San Antonio. I miss that place now that I'm an hour away, just a little too far to go there regularly.

I've donated this painting to the 100@100 show at the Wimberley Valley Art League to benefit the victims of the recent flooding in Wimberley Texas.This one might be delegated to the silent auction for works of over $100 value! If you're near the area I hope you can make it to the show this Saturday, June 27, 2-6pm, at the Wimberley Community Center! If not, contact the Wimberley Valley Art League and ask them about viewing and bidding or purchasing the artworks online!

Shady Creek (for Wimberley Flood Victims)

"Shady Creek"  (pastel, 8x10 inches) Donated

This was a demo at the Victoria (TX) Art League about a year or so ago. I always liked it but just never got around to framing it until recently when I decided to donate it to the 100@100 sale benefiting the Barnabas Connection for Wimberley Flood Victims.  The show will be this Saturday, June 27. See the Wimberley Valley Art League for details. Send them a message asking to get all the images online for out-of-town buyers!! :D

This painting will be available for a $100 donation!

Garden Angel (For Wimberley Flood Victims)

"Garden Angel"  (pastel, 11x8 inches) Donated

Here's another of several paintings I've dug up from the depths of my studio to donate to the Wimberly (TX) 100@100 special show on June 27, 2015. All proceeds from the show will go to the Barnabas Connection for Wimberley Flood Victims. Contact the Wimberley Valley Art League to bid on or purchase a painting, or for more info on how to help!

Quiet Time (and the 100@100 for Wimberley Flood Victims)

"Quiet Time"  (pastel, 13x10 inches) donated

Here's a blast from the past; one of my very first still life paintings after starting my efforts to seriously improve my artwork, back in 2002. My first step was ongoing classes with pastel artist Mary Johnson at the Coppini Academy of Fine Art in San Antonio (where I lived back then.) I'd been working with pastel since I was 11, but after college was mostly doing commissioned portraits from client photos... Great for learning how to copy stuff, but NOT the best venue for creativity or learning the nuances of composition and design and other principles of great art.

Drawn from life, this one was always one of my favorites, especially the glasses resting on the book! I have a few handfuls of these old favorite paintings that never found buyers, and have been digging them up from the depths of my messy studio, in the wake of the recent massive flooding in Wimberley Texas (just 20 minutes up the road from me!) to support a special one-day show that will be hosted by the Wimberley Valley Art League on Saturday, June 27. "100@100" will feature 100 (or more) paintings priced at $100. A few larger and special pieces will be available at a silent auction. 100% of the proceeds will go to the Barnabas Connection for Wimberley Flood Victims.

Visit the Wimberley Valley Art League site for more information on this special exhibit and how you can help! (Contact them to ask if they will be posting all artworks on a webpage or FB page! -- I'm pushing for this! ;)
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Peek-A-Burro II, and Workshop!

"Peek-A-Burro II" (pastel, 14x11 inches) donated

I don't normally re-use original, witty titles like this one (usually just the boring titles like "Road Sketch" or "Park Trail" or "Cloud") but I had to make an exception here because I honestly couldn't come up with a another title for this image that fit half so well, and this is the third painting I've done from the reference photo. I do have another possible title, but I'm very likely going to paint from this same reference yet again, and wanted to reserve the title for that one.

I just mailed off this Peek-a-Burro, my donation for the ACT (Artists Changing Tomorrow) International Invitational Exhibit and Silent Auction, sponsored by Arts for Rural Texas. Since 2010, ACT has raised over $100,000 that has contributed to arts and cultural events for over 6000 children and adults. Research reflects that the arts contribute substantially to tourism and economic development in communities. 

Visit www.act4art.com to find out more, and check back in a couple days to see "Peek-A-Burro II" among the posted artwork available in ACT2014!

On another note, there are still a few spaces left in my 3-day "Pastel in Miniature" workshop coming up soon, Nov. 21-23., in Breckenridge, TX. A small town between Fort Worth and Abilene, it hosts a gorgeous Arts Center with a to-die-for workshop room! Don't miss out on this one!

Register by mail or online with Paypal! Visit my Workshop Page for registration info and lodging guide.

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Summer Storm Gathering

"Summer Storm Gathering"  (pastel, 5x5 inches)  click here to bid

This was the last in my short spurt of sunsets and skies before the desperate rush of my 2-woman show last week. In the wake of Hurricane Sandy, I've decided to offer this one, and maybe some others I've got laying around, to the relief effort. 100% of the proceeds of this auction (minus the shipping) will be donated to the American Red Cross to help the victims of Hurricane Sandy. I've reduced my usual auction starting price of $100 to encourage bids! Please be generous!

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Art vs. Oil Spill - Art With a Cause

Recently in my online wanderings I came across the blog of watercolor artist Paul Jackson, who has created the site "Art vs. Oil Spill", an online store featuring a collection of
artwork donated by more than 100 artists around the the world specifically to benefit wildlife rescue operations along the Gulf Coast after the BP oil spill disaster.

I was so taken with this idea, and the opportunity to help, that I sent in the images of my 6 new 'beach scenes' (birds and dead fish), and I'm thrilled with how they look on all the Zazzle store products!
Check them out! Proceeds from purchases will benefit the Wildlife Rehabilitation and Nature Preservation Society, an all volunteer registered non-profit organization.

There are dozens of products per image! See all of mine here.

(The Dead Fish Tie is my favorite!)

Quick-Draw with the Texas Wild Bunch

It was a fun weekend in Kerrville with the Texas Wild Bunch for their annual art show and sale at the YO Ranch Resort Hotel. My friend and fellow pastelist Steven Napper invited me to participate. Saturday at 5 was the Quick-Draw event, with more than a dozen talented artists each completing a painting in one hour, which were then auctioned off. The proceeds benefited the Former Texas Ranger Foundation.
Here I am with my one-hour pastel painting of a flower seller from the Texas Renaissance Festival.