Paint the Town 2008

The 2008 edition of "Paint the Town" is, as they say in the books. Or, maybe more accurately put, "On the walls". I want to thank all of the artists who participated. As a veteran of paintouts I know you worked hard. Every time I participate in a paintout, win, lose or draw (no pun intended), I come away determined to grow. I hope you all were inspired and motivated.
Here is a brief litany of by-lines to this year's story:
"Paint the Town 2008" received a lot of attention this year. There were a lot of firsts. We gave a presentation to City Council, we were on the front page of the City's webpage and on St. Pete's official events calendar: http://cms.stpete.org/default.asp?page=1420
We were covered by the St. Pete Times, put on the front page in the Times northern distribution area and were prominent on their webpage: http://blogs.tampabay.com/breakingnews/2008/04/artist-cindy-st.html
We were also covered by the Gulfport Gabber: http://www.thegabber.com/1-10.pdf.
This is awesome publicity. The future looks promising.
The $1,000 first prize went to Ron Marvin for his painting "Yellow Apartment". At Paint the Town 2007 Ron was in the wheelchair he used for 10 years. Due to a new surgical procedure, Ron has regained his ability to walk. I'm thrilled for Ron both because he got an award and because he is ambulatory again. I think I saw a little giddy-up in his step as he left the gallery Saturday evening.
The $500 Second Prize went to Don Eaton for "Dawn Light at the Unitarian Church". His story really warms the heart. Several years ago Don left his nine-to-fiver, so he could pursue his passion for oil painting. Don lives on tight budget and works hard teaching himself to paint. He has been plugging away, painting daily, for several years. His work shows us that hard work does pay off. Good job, Don.
The story line of Opening Night didn't involve an artist. That night I observed how Interior Motives' owner Leslie Curran interacted with the diversely eclectic group of people who came in and out of the gallery on this artwalk night. The extreme ends of the human spectrum included Jerry the homeless guy and noted author Jeff Klinkenburg. Leslie was the same person with all. She gave Jerry the same amount of time and respect as she did Jeff. A wonderful example of how we should treat people. Through Leslie's influence the past few months Jerry has gained the confidence and poise needed to function in a social setting. I have no doubt that he will continue to grow and gain acceptance in society.
As president of SPRAA, Inc., I am feel proud and fortunate that Interior Motives donated the exhibit space for "Paint the Town 2008". I hope this will be home for the show for many years to come.
For more about Representational Art in St. Pete go to: http://robertjsimone.com/spraa-inc
To see the work of Florida Gulf Coast Artist Robert J. Simone go to: http://robertjsimone.com