Paint for a Cause creates new art, helps Safe House for Women

Looking at the partially completed canvas in Aaron Horrell's studio, it's difficult to envision what the final product is going to look like.

And that's what he's excited about.

Horrell is a local artist, having been in the Painted Wren Art Gallery in Bilderbach's Art Plaza in downtown Cape Girardeau since 2011. He said it's taken him this long to think of a good idea to help a local not-for-profit group. After a stamp of approval from his wife, it's finally a reality.

His project is called "Paint For a Cause." After donating a dollar, participants have one minute to fill in any of the outlines on the canvas using whatever color they choose and a brush Horrell provides.

Upon request, he'll mix the basic colors, creating a variance the painters themselves didn't realize.

Tara Patterson provides a few brush strokes for the Paint for a Cause community painting as Aaron Horrell watches Friday at Painted Wren Art Gallery in Cape Girardeau. (Fred Lynch)

All the money raised goes toward the Safe House for Women in Cape Girardeau, and for the past two months, it's been a collaborative effort.

Jessica Hill, executive director of Safe House, chose the original piece of Horrell's to be painted. It's titled "Third Grade Summer Vacation," a piece Horrell painted in 2011.

"Aaron and I met at his studio and just looking at all the different paintings that he has," Hill said. "He has so many excellent pieces to choose from. This one seemed to have the right feeling. I thought people would enjoy painting on it, and it would make a nice addition to someone's home."

After choosing the piece, Horrell had it copied and its color removed. The copy was printed on artist canvas by Victor Kantchev, who agreed to donate his work. Barb Bailey, an exhibitor at Painted Wren, then contacted the Bollinger County Museum of Natural History director Eva Dunn to see whether the museum would donate the paint for the project. The museum agreed.

Horrell's explanation of the piece is simple: He drew what he thought a third-grader's summer vacation would be like.

The painting is a collage of summer fun, with a giant flower and strawberry taking up the majority of the right side, a child upside-down to the left, and a variety of animals -- real or imaginary -- decorating the entire canvas.

The project has been ongoing since mid-March, Horrell said, and he plans to keep it going until April 30.

As of early April, the strawberry is decorated with a multitude of colors, a green horse sits serenely in the lower corner, and a red-tailed squirrel is balanced on top of a tumbling toddler.

"You do not have to be an artist to participate in Paint for a Cause and show your appreciation for the good work Safe House for Women does," Horrell said. "This is your chance to visit an art gallery and actually help create a very unique painting."

Horrell said people of every age have helped in the project, from infants to 91 years old.

Hill said she hopes the painting will be auctioned at Safe House's annual silent auction in collaboration with the Vintage Now fashion show in the fall.

"It's such a nice thing anyone can participate in," she said. "Everyone can have a part in this project. ... We're really excited to get our staff, support groups and clients involved next week as well."

smaue@semissourian.com

388-3644

pertinent address:

Bilderbach's Art Plaza, 5 North Main Street, Cape Girardeau