TEXARKANA, Ark. - The gorgeous glass art of James Hayes brings color and vibrancy to the Joseph Raymond Fine Art Gallery this Friday for a pop-up show.
Held from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. at the 214 E. Broad St. gallery spot, the one-night-only exhibit showcases a Pine Bluff, Arkansas, artist whose style recalls famous glass artist Dale Chihuly.
Hayes has participated in a number of multi-artist shows Raymond has hosted at the Omega Building downtown. This time, the glass art goes solo.
"What I'm doing is I am featuring, once a month, an artist. They'll all be sculpture, glass whatever - photography, oil, any medium. But I'm going to feature one artist per month, and it will be for a weekend, sometimes Thursday, Friday, Saturday," Raymond said. "In this case, James will just be here Friday night."
Hayes will bring a bunch of new work, a variety, said the gallery owner.
"We've got Valentine's Day on Sunday so it will be a lot of his smaller stuff, collectible works, his glass bowls," Raymond said. "He's bringing some chandeliers. Just a big variety. A lot of very gift-price pieces and seasonal." Hayes makes pendants and jewelry, too.
"He has quite a following of people that collect his work, so I thought it would be neat to bring his stuff. It's just a really big variety," Raymond said, noting Hayes will be available to sign pieces if people have unsigned work they'd like signed.
People love the art Hayes creates and he's a big draw. "Some of his stuff is very affordable, and he has higher end stuff but it's a good mix," Raymond said.
Among the notable large works from Hayes is a massive art glass chandelier that hangs in Hempstead Hall, a performance venue in Hope, Arkansas.
"He's really, really good, and he's really a treasure for Arkansas. He's even had television programs about him and stuff like that. He's pretty big time," Raymond said, adding, "I'm so glad to be part of the vibrancy, the life, the regeneration or just the renovation of downtown. There's so much exciting stuff happening."
Some older buildings have just been purchased or are closing, he said.
"So there's really a lot of happening, even that's not yet seen. I think downtown's the place to be," Raymond said.
An artist whose work has been exhibited across the country and featured in many publications, Hayes is a graduate of Hendrix College and studied glassblowing at the Arkansas Arts Center's museum school. He's also studied elsewhere in the U.S. and overseas, including Murano, Italy, where there remains a longtime tradition of glassblowing, and Paris, France, in addition to the Pilchuck School Glass School in Washington state.
For more information on Hayes and his James Hayes Art Glass Co., visit Hayesartglass.com.