By Joel Langton
The 830 Times
Six artists, a couple of singers and bands and hundreds of people crowded Main Street Saturday night, supporting the Downtown Revitalization Project.
The project was spearheaded by the Main Street Program.
Six artists created live paintings while people could watch and then bid. While artists were painting, the singers and bands were playing.
“I really loved it,” said Sheri Vela, a member of the Main Street Program who led the project. “I’m a sucker for live music and I love art, and it really made me smile when I saw people walking along and stopping to watch the artists paint while the music was playing.”
However, the event was more than a good time. It was a fundraiser and the money raised will be used for new signage, new painting, additional bench seating plus some other projects in the historic downtown district the city doesn’t have the money for.
The musical guests were Freddie O (Ochoa) who kicked it off, then Juan Nanez played with Accidental Drama closing the night out.
Meanwhile, painters had their brushes, paint and canvases set up between Gorzugi’s and The Laughlin Museum.
The artists, who eventually had their works auctioned off, were Bianka Santillan, Juan “Bubbly” Gomez, Marcos Mares, Bryan Rubino, Chris Mendez and Andrea Lopez.
The artists’ paintings raised $948 and overall the event brought in $3,700. “We have some donations pending, we’re hoping it will raise another $2,000,” Vela said.
Vela said the other members of the Main Street Program are Ashley Trevino, Nancy Hill, Armando Trevino and Marte Escobedo.
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Contact the author at joelalangton@gmail.com .
