Tonight was the finale of an eleven month project that involved planning, prepping and decorating a Christmas Tree for the FoT Gala. Working with my design partner, Jessica Maron, we created an Art Collector Tree that received the award for Best Design as well as selling for $2600 - the most of any tree this year.
A long-time friend, Jennifer Jochum attended the event with me.
The decorations include hand painted, by Jessica and myself, replicas of paintings by famous artists. Additional details inlcude custom paint can labels, and artists pallettes.
In addition to showcasing our creativity, we wanted to highlight some local artists. Several friends who work as artists full-time or as a side job or hobby, were willing to donate art work to be given with the tree. A huge thank you for the contributions of M.E. Kuzma, Amy Lauria, Tim Long, and Shirley Slemc. Also, Jane Young Swank donated time and materials to create the paint puddle tree skirt.
A side note. Photosharing/Social Media app Instagram had a significant role in this tree/event. Jessica and I met at an Instagram meetup almost 2 years ago. Tim Long who donated a piece of art, and Paul Evans who attended the event are part of this same Instagram group.
