By Jeremy Carr
Last season, the Surprise Fine Art & Wine Festival was an enormous success and Thunderbird Artists, with the City of Surprise, are excited to be partnering again this season to produce the city’s 5th Annual Surprise Fine Art & Wine Festival, 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Feb.17-19 at Surprise Recreation Campus, 15960 N. Bullard Ave. Admission is $3 and parking is free. Call 480-837-5637 or visit
www.ThunderbirdArtists.com.
The featured artists, Neil and Vivian Blanck, have created a medium all their own, by combining painting and sculptural work. This husband and wife team developed their present form of painting on spherical pieces of maple wood, in order to create both a painterly and sculptural selection of work. In the 1970’s, Neil discovered he enjoyed the added challenge of working with spheres and unique niche not commonly seen. The paintings are both abstract and representational, where spatial and color relationships are constantly changing, depending on the positioning of the sphere.
In addition to the Blanck’s, 75 other juried fine artists will join Thunderbird Artists to bring the city of Surprise a world-class, fine art event. Patrons will enjoy more than 2,000 paintings, small, medium and life-size bronzes, glass sculptures, metal creations, hand thrown clay, Raku pottery and sculptures, wood turned bowls, unique and one of a kind jewelry, photography, elegant stone, copper, clay and mixed media sculptures.
Thunderbird Artists knows how important it is for local businesses to be involved in the community and is dedicated to working with charities at each event. 25% of all wine proceeds from the Surprise Fine Art & Wine Festival benefit the Kiwanis Club, a charity thad devotes their time and energy to serving youth communities that could use a helping hand.
The festival will also encompass live musical entertainment and food. Crab Fiesta offers delicious seafood, Nakia’s Kitchen serves authentic Greek favorites, not to mention the courtesy of K & C Concessions and Poutine. Visitors can also snack on kettle corn, fudge, caramels and more while strolling throughout this unparalleled art arena.
