Several local artists have participated in the annual Delta Visual Arts Show in Newport in the past and plan to do so again, but this year’s lineup features a few new artists who will make the trip on Saturday.
The ninth annual Delta Visual Arts Show will open at 10 a.m. Saturday in downtown Newport. The show, which is promoted by the Blue Bridge Center for the Delta Arts in Newport, is free and open to the public.
More than 180 artists will have their work on display. Visitors will have an opportunity to meet the artists, as well as purchase their art. There will also be workshops and demonstrations throughout the day. Authors and musicians will be featured as well.
Bud Finley of Alexander is among the first-time artists participating in the show.
“I’m new at this. This is my very first art show anywhere. I do paintings, mainly oil paintings,” he said.
“I have always had an interest in art. In fact, my very first art class was in grade school. I continued my art through junior high and high school, where I was in the art club,” he said.
“I always enjoyed it,” Finley said. “I even considered making it my career until I realized how hard that would be.
“Now, after a 40-year career, mainly in commercial real estate, I am getting back into art.”
Finley said he has taken classes in watercolor and oils at the Arkansas Arts Center.
“That has rekindled my interest in art,” he said, adding that he has also been taking private art lessons.
Finley and his wife, Caroline, live on a family farm in Saline County that was established by her great-grandfather in 1907.
“We’ve lived out here for 45 years, and I am seeing things that I never noticed before. I’m looking at things through an artist’s eyes,” he said.
“My wife just rolls her eyes when I say that,” Finely added, laughing.
“But I do have a new perspective on things,” he said. “I paint mainly landscapes and a few still lifes. I’ve created about 40 or 50 paintings. My kids have taken a couple, my wife has taken a couple, but I find myself asking, ‘What am I going to do with all these paintings?’
“I have a house full of paintings. I hope to sell some of them at this show. I am going to take them and see what happens.”
Finley said he has been to previous Delta Visual Art shows as a visitor, rather than a participating artist, and has always enjoyed them.
“I’m looking forward to it,” he said. “I’m looking forward to seeing the people and all the art.”
Laura Treadway of Benton is also a newcomer to the Delta Visual Arts Show.
She describes herself as “an IT (information technology) analyst by day and a wire-wrapper at night.” She has been designing and creating wire-wrapped jewelry since 2014; her creations are known as Backroad Baubles.
“I love jewelry and didn’t want to pay the high prices, so I bought some supplies and starting making some pieces,” she said. “I started selling to friends and co-workers and quickly began receiving orders from others.”
Treadway said she heard about the Delta Visual Arts Show through fellow artist Matt Coburn, who owns Cross Street Art Gallery in Benton, where she shows her jewelry.
Treadway has a master’s degree in computer science but no formal art training. She will take a variety of her jewelry to the upcoming show in Newport.
Other area artists making first-time appearances at the Delta Visual Awards Show include the following:
• Nick Dunning of Benton will show metalwork lamp pieces and industrial vintage lamps.
“I am super excited about having the opportunity to be part of the Delta Visual Arts Show this year,” he said.
Dunning also shows his work at Cross Street Art Gallery in Benton.
• Rustina Green, also of Benton, will show abstract art and artistic soap.
Green’s work may be viewed at the Cross Street Art Gallery in Benton and on her website artbyrusstina.com.
Among local artists returning this year to Newport are the following:
• Lois Davis of Alexander will show pottery, paintings, prints and jewelry.
“I describe myself as a colorist because color is a vital component of all my work. I began with the strong vivid colors used in pastels and added raku, which has strong copper and metallic colors,” Davis said.
“I worked in pastel for nine years and then added sculpture, which gave my art a third dimension,” she said. “This past year, I have added jewelry using copper and stones.
“I love this [Delta Visual Arts Show] because the people who attend truly appreciate art and artists,” she said. “The organizers are dedicated to art and work hard to improve the show each year. I have attended each show except the very first one, which I missed due to family illness. I plan to attend all future shows.”
One of the paintings Davis will display at the show this year is a pastel of a bird she titles Roxa. She did the painting for Artists and Biologists United for Nature, a group of artists who allow biologists to use their work to help endangered animals.
• Sarah Johnson of Benton will make her third trip to Newport.
Johnson said she has enjoyed creating art since childhood. She plans to take a small watercolor piece that she finished recently called Coneflowers and Crystal.
“It turned out better than I expected with the addition of pen and ink,” she said. “I will take some other small watercolor pieces. I will also have some ceramic tiles painted with a new interest of mine, alcohol inks. The inks result in really bright colors.”
Several other local artists are scheduled to make return visits to the show at Newport. They include Freda Angeletti of Benton, who will show paintings and pottery; Matt Coburn of Benton, who will display oil paintings; Amber LaRue of Benton, who will display pottery; Kelley Naylor-Wise of Hot Springs, who will show jewel designs and paintings; and Deanna Schuh of Benton, who will show ornaments, paintings and cards.
Jon Chadwell, executive director of the Newport Economic Development Commission, said this year’s show features 184 artists, 20 authors and 20 musicians from five states and 62 Arkansas communities, highlighting primarily artists who grew up in the Delta, live or have lived in the Delta, or who produce Delta-themed work. The visual art covers a broad range of art, including pottery, painting, jewelry and sculpture.
“The Blue Bridge Center for the Delta Arts is very excited to host our biggest show ever in Newport,” he said. “The energy and creativity that happen when over 200 artists, authors and musicians come together in one place is amazing. If you like art, books or music, then you’ll love this show.
“The Authors’ Corner is new,” he said. “We have 20 authors who will be attending, and we have several who will be doing readings; that activity will be in the W.A. Billingsley Memorial Jackson County Library. We are also adding acoustical musicians to each venue for atmosphere.”
Among the local authors scheduled to participate in the Authors’ Corner is Angie Macri of Hot Springs.
For more information on the Delta Visual Arts Show, call (870) 523-1009 or visit newportarcity.org, click on calendar, the Feb. 25, and follow the link. Information is also available on the Blue Bridge Center for the Delta Arts Facebook page.