PrintDaily Painters of Texas
Guard Duty by Debbie Grayson Lincoln, oil, 12 x 16.
The Daily Painters of Texas are on the forefront of a burgeoning trend where art, daily inspiration, and the blogosphere converge. The result? More people buying art at affordable prices and more artists making a living at their craft. Laurie Pace, a successful Dallas-based artist who helped start the group, thinks it’s a good thing. “An artist today can’t just be an artist,” she says. “My background is in commercial art, and I understand the importance of marketing. Not enough artists know how to observe and nurture their own creativity and set themselves apart.” By creating a virtual space on the Internet where artists can not only share ideas but also post and sell art frequently and for little risk (pieces can sell for as little as $40), Pace is providing a new way to look at original art—one that does not require a gallery, or a large investment.
“The daily painting movement has come a long way,” Pace says. “The goal was originally to complete a painting each day. But now it’s more about making painting part of your daily life.” Inspired by Micah Condon, who founded The Daily Painters Gallery in Colorado, and Duane Keiser, the Richmond, Virginia-based artist who started the blog “A Painting a Day,” Pace decided to bring the daily painting movement to Texas. Now with more than 40 members, the group has also spawned the Artists of Texas, which had its first statewide show this past fall at the Dutch Art Gallery in Dallas.
A glimpse through the Daily Painters of Texas blog makes the diversity, and inspiration, of these Lone Star artists clear: Colorful Still Life by Shirley Quaid shows a table simply set with a vine-ripened tomato and three jalape"os; Kristine Kainer’s Honey with Dipper captures the golden Texas nectar dripping into a Mason jar; and Pat Meyer’s We Ain’t Chicken in Texas shows a cocky rooster itching for a fight. “Weekend artists are great,” Pace says, “but if you really want to grow, you have to put in the time and the practice every day.”
SHOWS: Somewhere in Texas: A Painting Begins, October–December, Dutch Art Gallery, Dallas, 214.348.7350, www.dutchartusa.com.
BLOGS: Artists of Texas, www.artistsoftexas.org, artistsoftexas.blogspot.com. Daily Painters of Texas, dailypaintersoftexas.blogspot.com.
Issue: June 2010
