Art lovers of all ages may view the Stars of Texas Juried Art Exhibit February 5-17 at the Depot Civic and Cultural Center located at 600 E. Depot in Brownwood. Show hours are Monday-Friday from 9:00 am – 6:00 pm, Saturday from 10:00 am – 4:00 pm and Sunday from 1:00 pm – 4:00 pm.
Artwork that did not make the Stars of Texas Art Exhibit will be featured in the Salon des Refuses at the Brownwood Art Association Art Center, located at 215 Fisk Street during the above hours.
Demonstrations will also take place each day during exhibit hours from a variety of artists. There is no charge to enter the exhibit or attend the demonstrations.
1. Tony Brown: 3-D Techniques In Acrylic – “I had lots of exposure to art at an early age. Both of my parents were academics, and we often took in art museums all over the world. As a teenager, I was especially inspired by two museums. In Mexico City, I fell in love with the artwork of the Mayans and Aztecs which was rich in sculpture and relief pieces. The Van Gogh Museum in Amsterdam exposed me to the most wonderful of colors. These things compel me today. I think I have spent my life investigating shape, texture, and color. Sounds simple, but it is true. When I do my mixed media reliefs, I use bondo, t-shirt paints, exterior spackle, wood, and the palette knife to get the 3-D effects on canvas.
My family is bountiful with artists. My two older sisters are artists. My wife was a potter. One of our daughters is studying Theater Tech-stage design. The other one is a photographer who teaches art classes at two local colleges. Her husband is a painter and filmmaker. Our son works in “The Cloud”. I’m not sure how creative that is! It is great to see the variety of interest and expertise that runs even in my own family.”
2. J.B. Taylor: applying patina to structures – In 1982 J.B. Taylor began his career in sculpture. In the beginning, he chose wood as his medium. He became interested in folk art, sometimes called chip carving. His carvings consisted of western and religious themes.
Later in life, he decided to move into casting some of his art. He moved into the bronze, pewter, and cold casting mediums. J.B. now practices stylized carving and still does some casting on a limited basis.
Mr. Taylor owned and worked in his studio called Tuff Times Gallery in Brownwood after retirement. He closed the gallery in 2003 and now works out of his home studio.
3. R.J. Barnett: Watercolors – R.J. Barnett is an artist living with his wife and four sons in Abilene, Texas. He got his under-grad degree at Howard Payne University majoring in Art Communication, and becoming involved in the Brownwood Art Association. R.J. currently works for the children of New Horizons at The Audrey Grace House.
Since he was a child, R.J. has been interested in fantasy and folk-mythology. The surrealist nonsense of Salvador Dali and of Super Mario Bros., the classic magic of J.R.R.Tolkien, the wonderful stories from Hayao Miyazaki, Neil Gaiman, the artwork of Scottie Young, and a flood of readily available artwork from websites such as Instagram and Tumblr all influence R.J.’s artistic style. Spending most of his time with kids greatly influences his philosophy. “Good art should be readily available to consume and also to create.”
R.J. will be demonstrating watercolor at this year’s Stars of Texas Juried Art Exhibit. Watercolor is a wonderful medium that is easily accessible and can be worked in a variety of fantastic styles and techniques. R.J. also enjoys linoleum block printing and paper mache.
