Kim and I have had a great experience building and operating the gallery over the last 3 hectic years. We thoroughly enjoyed designing the space; surrounding ourselves (and our customers) with beautiful works of art; meeting the many talented, local artists; hosting gallery events; and finding art collectors and fans of local art.

The local community has been very supportive in our quest to bring more color and creativity to Keller. We’ve exposed art to many new eyes, and hopefully inspired others to keep the creative spirit alive. We’ve successfully connected many new and existing art lovers to a trove of great new art, and uncovered a rich vein of local talent in the process, much of which remained previously mostly hidden to the local community.

For the time being, we plan to keep the art251 website and blog operating as we work on the next phase of our adventures in creativity.

And, she has other celebrities with her. We’re not talking about other so-called “pseudo-celebs” that are “famous” because they once appeared on a reality TV and now tweet about health food or climate change. We mean Keller has been invaded by real celebrities with real talent. Oh, wait! There goes Martin Scorsese. And, and, here comes Harrison Ford!

Audrey Hepburn by Jonathon Kimbrell, Silk Screen Print and Acrylic on Canvas.

Keller hasn’t seen this many celebrities since, well, forever! (In fact, we’ve never seen any in Keller). What’s even more remarkable about this once in a lifetime, star-studded event is that many of the celebs visiting art251 actually departed planet earth quite some time ago. Whoa, my eyes are deceiving me, surely… Peter Sellers, Marilyn, James Dean? And, over there I can see Roy Orbison and Big Bill Broonzy jamming with Keith Richard – now of course in the case of Keiff (as his mates call him), the jury is still out as to whether he’s no longer with us or actually still alive, but, regardless, we have him captive here inside art251 as well. Unbelievable.

Please come and see for yourselves! Come quickly, our walls may not be able to contain so much talent and such vast egos (Audrey Hepburn excepted) for much longer!

This is a once a year chance to purchase great art at unbelievable prices. Remember, we don’t negotiate prices or discount at other times of the year. So, now is the time.

And, even though we’re an art gallery we have a great selection of gifts for her, him and the teacher. We have gifts in all price ranges, starting at $5 for an art-o-mat, under $25, under $250, and over. We have gifts for young and not so young, stylish and eclectic. Best of all, none of our gifts require batteries or contain toxic chemicals from elsewhere.

We have beautiful glass vases and rondels. We have glass ornaments for your Christmas tree. We have fine jewelry from wearable glass, to contemporary and colorful polymer clay. We have functional pottery and unique, museum quality decorative ceramics. We have warm sculptures in exotic woods. We have flying machines. We have fluid abstracts and luminous landscapes and soft geometrics. We have detailed, imagined landscapes and lush verdant works of insects. We have subtly soft pastels and vibrant mixed media.

We have fun paintings for children and works for grown-ups who seek sophisticated style. We have vivid photographs of our beautiful local surroundings and far-away lands. We have hard forged steel candlesticks and soft fabric art. We have fine sculpture in metal and in wood. Phew! Did I miss anything?

So, make this season special. Give the gift of art. It’s unique, it’s lasting, it’s meaningful, and it’s local. And, it’s on sale right now.

Make no mistake, the situaton unfolding between Keller and Dallas eclipses the legendary rivalries between Road Runner and Wile E Coyote, Mac versus PC, Federer versus Nadal, Man U versus Chelsea, Boston Red Sox versus New York Yankees. Yes, this battle is on a par with Batman versus The Joker, and Luke Skywalker versus Darth Vader.

I’m talking about the battle of the Art-o-mats.

You see, almost two years ago art251, right here in Keller, installed the very first Art-o-mat in North Texas. Now, the Big D is imitating it smaller, cuter neighbor to the west and playing catch-up by unveiling a rival Art-o-mat in North Dallas. On Saturday, May 15, only the second Art-o-mat machine in North Texas premiers at the new Whole Foods Market on Park Lane.

To honor this event art251 is hosting Mr. Clark Whittington on May 13, 6-9 pm, during our monthly Keller Gallery Walk. Clark is artistic impresario, chief-innovation-officer, head (TPB) supervisor of Artists-in-Cellophane, and the all-round creative spark behind the Art-o-mat. Then on May 15, Clark heads east to officially unveil the “rival” machine in Dallas.

I’ll let you decide which of the 2 Art-o-mat machines is the classiest. By the way, ours has been on the Rachael Ray Show.

Art-o-mat, art251, Keller

Art-o-mat, Whole Foods Market, Dallas

In case you don’t know what an Art-o-mat is read on. Art-o-mat is a machine. It’s actually a retired and lovingly restored cigarette machine that’s been converted to vend art. In 1997, Clark Whittington used a recently-banned cigarette machine to create the first Art-o-mat. He used the machine to showcase his own black & white photographs which he sold for $1 each. The concept proved so popular with the host of the first machine and other artists that the project soon took on a life of its own. Art-o-mat, the organization, has now grown to around 90 Art-o-mat machines featuring over 400 contributing artists from 10 different countries.

You make your home in the 7th best place to live in the United States, as ranked by CNN Money Magazine. You welcomed your first commercial art gallery – art251 – in September 2008. Now, you are home to a superb new restaurant. City Hall officially opened its doors on March 22, 2010. It’s located in the Arthouse development in Keller Town Center and is only a 2 minute stroll from art251.

So, what’s so special about City Hall?  Two things. First, the restaurant has first class ambiance and service and an original chef-driven menu led by nationally recognized Chef Otto Borsich. Second, the restaurant is adorned with original art from art251. The walls feature abstracts by Dana Blanchard, Fil Booth and Michael Longhofer.

City Hall is an upscale contemporary American fare restaurant. It’s the first restaurant in Arthouse, a mixed-use community that features multifamily apartments and an eclectic mixture of retail tenants, including art251. The restaurant has a sophisticated urban feel complete with an open kitchen, rich woods, leather booths and contemporary lighting. The space also has a friendly bar and a private dining room, and thoroughly attentive service.

And, then there’s the menu. Real food in the ‘burbs: Maple Brined Pork Tenderloin Wild Mushroom Risotto Cake; Cedar Scented Grilled Salmon, Herbal Orzo; Pan Seared Sea Scallops, Leek & Potato Risotto style, Orange Reduction; Lobster Ravioli with a Light Fennel-Vanilla Cream Sauce. Fresh, original, artfully prepared, mouthwatering – just like art251’s art.

Yes, you read all of this correctly, you’re in the suburbs, surrounded by the culinary wastelands of the mega-chain, processed “food” franchises, and now you have access to lobster, scallops, risotto, and art all in the same evening, and all in your neighborhood!

City Hall images courtesy of City Hall Restaurant. Featured paintings: Teratogenesis by Dana Blanchard, Urban Energy, Hunting Art Prize 2009 finalist, Michael Longhofer.

Her oil painting depicts an evening street scene outside Madison Square Garden in New York and features representative breeds from all seven groups. The Empire State Building, aglow with Westminster’s signature purple and gold colors, sets the stage. Trish Biddle’s penchant for high fashion is evident, as stylish dog lovers stroll past a Westminster-themed Saks Fifth Avenue window, another New York City icon.

Trish Biddle’s impressive resume continues to grow. In 2009 she was named official artist of the Del Mar Thoroughbred Racing Club. In 2008, she was named official artist of the Kentucky Oaks and Kentucky Derby 134th Run for the Roses.

You can see more of Trish Biddle’s “Glamorous Women in Fabulous Places” original works and many of her limited edition, signed prints at art251.

Well, it’s really a technical answer. Even though tweets on twitter are limited to 140 characters, I didn’t want the added burden of having to update the art251 twitter status each time we posted new material on our website and blog. Of course, there a numerous ways to push status updates to twitter from websites, but I couldn’t find an efficient and reliable way until now. Now, that is, following a complete software upgrade of the art251 website. Hopefully you haven’t noticed any difference – we updated all the behind-the-scenes, inner-workings, and not the outer shell. So, if you follow art251 on Twitter, welcome and, stay tuned for more tweets and a little more art!

I know a mere 4-6 inches of snow is trivial compared to the recent record breaking blizzards in the eastern United States or the regular snowfalls in our mountainous regions. However, when it happens in the Dallas Ft.Worth area it’s a Texas-sized event! So, of course the entire area is rapidly coming to a frozen standstill. It’s beautiful out here – I may even have to build a snowman with my kids. However, art, for today at least, has come a standstill as well.

art251 is closed, and unfortunately, we’ve had to cancel our scheduled Gallery Walk in Keller Town Center on February 11. So, many apologies. Normal service will resume very soon – if you know anything about Texas weather. In the meantime, I’ll be making some art in the snow! Now, where are those skis of mine?

Update: After I hit the “publish” button, another 6 inches of snow buried our neighborhood. Not good for business, but great for our children and all kids at heart.

An exhibit of some of Sean’s stunning images is on display at art251 – Man And Nature runs until the end of November 2009. All the more exciting for us, because the Trinity River Audubon Center – home to many of Sean’s beautiful wildlife pictures – is also home to art251 Trinity River.

The Trinity River Corridor Project is the most complex and the largest urban development effort ever undertaken by the city of Dallas. It aims to transform a flood protection solution into an opportunity for community revitalization, economic development and the creation of a world-class greenway.

What is there to do at Trinity River Audubon Center (TRAC) besides art? PLENTY! Here’s a taste:

???? Hike four miles of trails through restored prairie, wetland and bottomland forest habitats
???? Take a guided nature walk for visitors of all ages
???? Bird more than 100 resident and migrant species
???? Enjoy nature from scenic overlooks and bird blinds
???? Learn about the area’s habitats and history through hands-on exhibits
???? Attend workshops on conservation practices & outdoor skills
???? Join a cool nature club: Bug Club, Bird Club, Frog Club, or Adventure Club
???? Attend a field trip with field-based education programs for students
???? Complete your Eagle Scout or Gold Award project
???? Stretch and relax in a yoga class
???? Open young eyes to nature in the Children’s Discovery Garden
???? Participate in the Cornell Lab of Ornithology eBird tracking program
???? Relax and enjoy refreshments on the overview deck or picnic area by the Trinity River
???? Attend Free Third Thursday lectures and activities
???? Sign up for Summer Camp
???? Join an educational program: Birds of Play, Discover Together, Birding 101, Living Green
???? Become a TRAC Volunteer Naturalist

Where are we?

TRAC is 8 minutes from Downtown Dallas on South Loop 12