For almost as long as there’s been a Southlake Town Square, there’s been Art In The Square. Every year since 2000, the Southlake Women’s Club has invited artists and art enthusiasts to spend the weekend celebrating in the heart of our downtown district. What was a local show put on by a small but mighty group of volunteers has become a nationally-recognized juried art festival with more than 1,300 volunteers and over 100 sponsors.
“The Southlake Women’s Club does a terrific job of creating a well-attended event where artists and their work are a priority,” longtime exhibitor and featured artist Rick Wright says. “It’s an invitational atmosphere where people want to attend, and I am so pleased to know that proceeds from the event go directly to a wide range of nonprofit organizations and other deserving beneficiaries. Art In The Square is an event for the community that also supports the community.”
Art In The Square is such a well-respected event that it draws established artists from near and far. This year, over 700 artists applied to be a part of the festival on April 28-30, which has just 160 available spots. Those who are granted an exhibitor’s badge are more than happy to make the trek to Southlake and be amongst so many talented artists and enthusiastic collectors.
Of the renowned artists who have been accepted, only a few are then selected to be a featured artist by the event organizers.
“Art In The Square hosts some of the best artists from around the nation,” Dallas artist Niki Gulley says. “To be included as a featured artist is an incredible honor.”
NIKI GULLEY | DALLAS
At an early age, Niki Gulley discovered the grandeur of nature uplifted her soul and realized she wanted to share this feeling with others. Having been inspired by the impressionist movement, Niki strives to capture the vibrant energy and intrinsic beauty of nature through her paintings.
“My impressionistic interpretations are derived out of feelings of pure joy,” Niki says. “When my work resonates with the viewer, it’s from this shared human experience that I gain satisfaction as an artist.”
What makes Niki’s art unique is her combination of impressionistic flair with a sculptor’s technique to create multi-dimensional canvases by applying paint thickly using palette knives. The style achieves a richness of depth that explodes with color, flows with light and evokes an uplifting response much akin to childlike wonder.
“Utilizing vivid colors, contrasting the play of light and shadow to create drama and using broad energetic strokes also add to a sense of vitality and motion, bringing my landscapes to life so that the natural settings almost dance,” Niki says.
TOM BOATRIGHT | TUMWATER, WA
Tom Boatright first felt compelled to pick up a paintbrush in 2008 after having a visionary and transformative experience. Tom set out painting through a series of visionary experiences in which he received a flood of light, what he calls the essence of love. Today, Tom paints outdoors on the grounds of his studio’s nature preserve.
“I paint to convey this energy, the beauty of humanity and nature,” Tom says of his large-scale abstract impressionism that is meant to “provoke and engage on a deep subconscious level.”
Tom reinforces his work with a background in technology which he utilizes to customize paints for each series. Through the addition of metals and luminescence to his raw oils and resins, Tom creates both vivid colors and organic textures that elicit light refraction and natural energy through his pieces.
“Color is not a property of objects, contrary to their appearance, but rather how we perceive light,” Tom says. “What we actually see are wavelengths of light. Color is essentially energy.”
When Tom is not in his natural surroundings at his studio, he enjoys meeting art enthusiasts and collectors exhibiting at shows throughout the country.
“[I’m] very honored to attend Southlake’s Art In The Square as a featured artist and looking forward to meeting some wonderful people,” he says.
RICK WRIGHT | KANSAS CITY, MO
Rick Wright was always fascinated by the human form and enjoyed the quick, raw gesture sketches from his art school days. Inspired most by dancers, aerialists and musicians, Rick’s work often focuses on the bold moves and personalities of those who use their bodies as vehicles for self-expression.
“My paintings are similarly inspired by a need for immediacy in capturing the essence of the figure,” Rick says. “I'm less concerned with portraiture or capturing the likeness of the individual as I am capturing the form of the body and the energy it exudes. I hope that my work will resonate with all ages and walks of life, but I suspect it may most readily catch the eye of those who aren't afraid to be bold and expressive in their own right.”
Rick started exhibiting his work regularly in 2006, and Art In The Square was his first foray into the arts festival circuit over a decade ago. In addition to his personal shows, he enjoys working with budding art students. As an art director with an arts-based nonprofit, Rick is currently working with 30 apprentice artists in the development of several mural projects in Lawrence, Kansas. And as the father of a 12-year- old daughter, he’s also guiding a mural project in her school in Kansas City, Missouri.
“I’m looking forward to sharing some of my more sizable pieces this spring,” Rick says. “I love being able to visit with family from the area and enjoy some of the music and events throughout the weekend.”