ArtCantHurtU

For those of you that have made the move to one of those beautiful, older, neglected neighborhoods you might have seen some issues. There is a lot of fixing up going on in these areas. While your working on your house you need to think of some new ways of pumping up the camaraderie in the area. Showing their Original Art is very exciting  for many local artist. If you get a new neighborhood idea going you can make improvements within the interpersonal layer of the community. In other words you can bring people together.

One such event that will attract a lot of attention is a community art show.

This could be a small locals only thing that the kids in the area could participate in. Or, you could make it the first of a new annual event in your city. For something like that you can get help from the city and turn it into a major city attraction. You can attract artists from all over and it will generate revenue for your neighborhood.

Before you start calling in artists you need to look at the laws and ordinances surrounding what you want to do. There are tons of funky city rules about things of this nature and you don’t want to get a bad surprise later on in planning. You would do well to use your neighborhood park for this because you will need a pretty space for all the artists and vendors. You need to look into getting permission, insurance, if needed and other things that are alien to you.

Get your ART team together

A team of volunteers is helpful for this to work. You will also need to attract sponsors. A corporate sponsor will give money and supplies to something of this type. You are not doing it for profit. That does not mean there will not be paying positions available at some point though. You could have wine companies donate wine that you will give out as samples. You can get money to help with advertising and other expenses. One thing that you want for sure are some promotional items. Shirts, hats, key-chains, or whatever you want. These can be where you give your sponsors some official credit and they will help remind people to look for next years event.

You can bring excitement, culture, and some revenue into your neighborhood with an art show. Just hit all the bases first such as, legal issues, planning, sponsoring, and attracting artists. There are multiple streams of revenue possible for something like this. If it is going to be a neighborhood event then you need to tap into the people of your area. You’d be surprised with the amount of knowledge that is floating around. Handmade artisans and professional muralists can also show their work.

Everyone wins

The businesses in your area will profit and you could even have it set up so your neighbors could set up stands in their yards to sell refreshments or whatever.

Original article: by Jonas Leon Rios Prairie Reporter

http://www.theprairienews.com/

There doesn’t seem to be many legal outlets that exist for graffiti artists, but one man not only welcomes this form of wall art but also encourages it.

Attorney Jeff Blackburn of Amarillo offers the outside wall of his business location, at the corner of Madison Street and SW 16th Avenue, as a creative outlet for those who wish to express free speech through the medium of spray painting and drawing. He states that “The Wall” changes constantly and usually has a complete new look every three days.

A couple of Caprock High School students were on site to tell about their passion for art, especially at “The Wall”.

Bobby Salcido from Amarillo enjoys spray painting on this wall because it allows him to take his time creating a piece of art – otherwise it would be illegal to spray paint elsewhere. He’s been creating art on this wall for about four years,

Salcido chooses random designs and wordings to paint, but stays away from any kind of crude or political messages. Aside from spraying, Salcido enjoys to airbrush, draw, stencil, and skateboard. Salcido plans to pursue some form of artistic display for a lifetime career.

Juan Bernal, Amarillo resident and friend of Salcido, can’t quite recall when he began drawing, but knows that it started at a young age. He recalls that his dad and family would comment on how he had an unusually good talent for being so young.

Today, Bernal doesn’t consider himself an artist per se, but that doesn’t stop him from doing what he does really well, which is draw. He prefers pen and ink drawing to other forms of sketching because, quite simply, it’s the easiest for him to do, “ it only requires pen and paper.”

Bernal relies on instinct and improvisation as his inspiration for his freelance art.

“There isn’t a right or way of being an artist,” Bernal said. “If there’s a right way, you’re probably copying somebody else and the work isn’t original. There isn’t a wrong way because every artist has their own way of doing things.”

Bernal goes on to state that he doesn’t have a favorite piece of artwork and that they are all equal. He parallels this to trying to pin down one favorite song, movie or if you’re a parent – a kid. Bernal states that he would like to push his art to its limits and see where it can get him

However, he is well aware that making it in the industry is challenging just like making it as a rock star in a band. He plans to continue his education in fine arts after high school.

The history of how “The Wall” came about started about six years ago as a means to give artists a place to express themselves, and to also detour any defacing of private property around town.

Blackburn told local officials about his wall and wanted to make sure that these artists were given a place to contribute their original artwork without persecution. He views those individuals as artists and not criminals. In fact, he has had the opportunity to converse with many of these artists and enjoys their stories and their remarkable artistry.

Blackburn is passionate about his wall and wishes that city government would recognize the expression of free speech and allow this art to be carried throughout designated areas in town, like local parks. This wall continues to gives artists the freedom to express themselves, and hopefully so for many more years to come. Every artist has their own story to tell and if walls could talk, “The Wall” would have plenty to say.