J. Brad Holt, My Friend and Mentor, Jimmie Jones @ SUU (Artisans' Art Gallery, Cedar City, Oct. 15, 7 PM)

WHAT:              As a youngster, artist J. Brad Holt accompanied family friend and painter Jim Jones, into the southern Utah landscape and painted alongside the man he considers his mentor. In conjunction with SUU´s Braithwaite Fine Arts Gallery´s current exhibition, Jim Jones: The San Blas Years, Holt offers his unique insight into the artist and the man Jim Jones who shaped the early years of Holt´s development as a painter.

WHO:               Artisans´ Art Gallery

WHEN:             Tuesday, October 15, 2013

TIME:               7pm

WHERE:           Artisans´ Art Gallery, 94 W. Center St., Cedar City, UT

INFO:               Phone: (435) 586-5432 or visit: www.suu.edu/pva/artgallery

PRICES:           Free and the General Public is encouraged to attend.

 ARTIST J. BRAD HOLT REFLECTS ON HIS MENTORSHIP

WITH RENOWNED LANDSCAPE PAINTER JIM JONES
TUESDAY, OCTOBER 15, 2013
AT ARTISANS´ ART GALLERY

Southern Utah University, Cedar City, Utah: As a youngster, artist J. Brad Holt accompanied family friend and painter Jim Jones, into the southern Utah landscape and painted alongside the man he considers his mentor. In conjunction with SUU´s Braithwaite Fine Arts Gallery´s current exhibition, Jim Jones: The San Blas Years, Holt offers his unique insight into the artist and the man Jim Jones, who shaped the early years of Holt´s development as a painter. Entitled My Friend and Mentor, Jimmie Jones, the evening features Holt working on a canvas and speaking about Jones and what Holt learned from the renowned southern Utah landscapist. This revealing evening will take place on Tuesday, October 15, 2013, at Artisans´ Art Gallery, 94 W. Center Street, Cedar City, and begins at 7pm. It is free and open to the public.

Reflecting upon his friend and mentor, J. Brad Holt reaches back through the years to bring Jones alive for contemporary art enthusiasts, students and community members. As Holt works on the canvas, he orally recounts the advice that was given to him as he painted alongside Jones. A special aspect of the evening, which includes a reception with light refreshments, is that there will be an opportunity to win the canvas Holt paints. A portion of the proceeds benefit the Southern Utah Museum of Art (SUMA), part of SUU´s Beverly Taylor Sorenson Center for the Arts which begins construction in March 2014. 

J. Brad Holt is that rare craftsman whose unique brushstroke technique has established him as one of southern Utah´s master landscape painters. He grew up in Cedar City, a graduate of Cedar City High School, and Southern Utah University. He spent childhood summers working on his Grandfather´s ranch in Orderville Utah, hauling hay and punching cows. At age seventeen he joined the Utah Army National Guard, and served for the next twenty years as a member of the 2^nd Battalion, 222^nd Field Artillery. Holt is a musician specializing in early woodwinds. He spent several seasons as a musician and performer with the Utah Shakespeare Festival in Cedar City, Utah. For the SUMA Community Engagement Committee, Holt has led two Art Hikes and created poster art for several past events. His paintings are featured in several prominent galleries in southern Utah including a 54-piece exhibition at the Springdale Community Center through October 26^th.

This special event is presented in conjunction with the Jim Jones: The San Blas Years exhibition. In the early 1960s, Jim Jones, a fledging artist from Utah, traveled to the small Mexican village of San Blas. While living there, he decided to capture its people and community on canvas. The results can be viewed in this remarkable exhibit at SUU´s Braithwaite Fine Arts Gallery which runs until November 9, 2013. The Gallery is open Tuesday-Saturday, noon-7pm; admission is free.

Jim Jones: The San Blas Years Associated Events & Workshops: In association with the Braithwaite Fine Arts Gallery´s exhibition, SUU is hosting other unique events and workshops which center on Jones´ time in Mexico and honor the culture and people that inspired the artist during this pivotal period of his career. All of these events are free and open to the public, and many present a special opportunity to celebrate National Hispanic Heritage Month (September 15-October 15). To get involved in these exciting events, or for more information, please visit: http://www.suu.edu/pva/artgallery.