W’boro PARD to host free art show this weekend

The Whitesboro Parks and Recreation Department (PARD) will host its 18th Shauney P. Lucas Community Art Show March 13, 14 and 15 at the Jimmie O. Rector Community Center. The show is open to all area artists to submit their art work for viewing. This event is entirely free; there is no charge to artists submitting their work, and there is no charge to visit and view the art.  

The event will begin tonight, Friday evening, with a reception honoring all the artists from 7 to 8:30 p.m. The reception is open to the public, and it is a good opportunity for visitors to meet the artists. 

“This year we are delighted to showcase the work of our Featured Artist, Cindy Hawkins, at the reception,” Parks and Recreation Director Penny Renfroe said. “Ms. Hawkins has been a favored artist of our shows for several years, and we are delighted to showcase her talent. The reception is a great opportunity to meet local artists and learn about their work. We are so appreciative to have the Whitesboro History Club as co-hosts for the artists’ reception once again! They are co-sponsors for this event, and they do a beautiful job of decorating and hosting for the weekend.” 

Also at the Artists’ Reception on Friday evening will be the selection of Viewers’ Choice Awards. Viewers may vote for favorite art pieces in several different categories: drawing, painting, 3, or photography. These categories will be available for both adult and youth divisions.  

“This will be the ninth year that we have included Viewers’ Choice awards,” Renfroe said. “This is a great way to engage viewers to really study the works and to give them an opportunity to actively participate in the show. It’s also extremely gratifying for the award winners.” 

The show continues on Saturday with viewing available from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., and again on Sunday from noon to 5 p.m. There is no charge for admission.  

“We see this event as an opportunity for a service to the community,” Renfroe said. “The arts are so vital, and we have many gifted artists in our area that are almost unknown. It is so amazing to hear people talk to old friends and say, ‘Wow, I had no idea that you could paint like that’, or ‘I never knew that you were a photographer!’  What a blessing to give those talented people a platform to showcase their work!”  

Featured artist Hawkins is a local artist living in Gordonville. She has loved drawing for as long as she can remember. That passion was recognized early when her kindergarten teacher wrote to her parents in 1964, encouraging them to continue nurturing what she believed was an artistic gift.

“I love the challenge of each new request [for commissioned work] and process of watching a subject come alive on paper,” Hawkins said.

Several pieces of her work will be on display at the show for the public to view. 

The Shauney P. Lucas Community Art Show was so named in 2011 in memory of Shauney Lucas, a young photographer who was killed in an automobile accident in October of 2010. Shauney was a member of the Parks and Recreation Department staff and was instrumental in the early art shows.  

For more information about the art show, visit the Parks and Recreation Department’s website at www.whitesborotexas.com/pard. Everyone is invited to attend the show at 400 Wilson Street in Whitesboro and view local artists’ work.