‘Exciting and Challenging’: The virtual Beaux Arts supports the students at Scottsdale Artists’ School

By Christina Fuoco-Karasinski

Trudy Hays says the Scottsdale Artists’ School found taking its virtual fundraiser online was “exciting and challenging.”

Because patrons around the world had the chance to participate, the school is doing it again. The 28th annual Beaux Arts is set for November 10 to November 13.

“Taking Beaux Arts to a virtual platform last year for the first time was both exciting and challenging,” says Hays, the school’s executive director.

“We have decided to stay virtual for 2021 because it allows our instructors, students and art community from around the world to participate.”

Beaux Arts, an extensive virtual silent art auction, is the school’s primary annual fundraiser. It features a variety of original artwork — such as oil paintings, watercolors, drawings and sculptures — from renowned professional artists. The auction also offers a limited set of juried work from the school’s student artists as well as travel packages and unique treasures.

For 39 years, Scottsdale Artists’ School has been a prominent influence in the community, teaching the fundamentals of fine art to artists and aspiring artists of all ages and skill levels.

The school is considered a leader in visual art training for all levels, offering over 270 adult programs annually taught by the nation’s leading artists. The learning environment includes fully equipped studios, a library, student lounge and a rotating art gallery. In addition, the school has a premier youth academy and an extensive outreach program.

Scottsdale Artists’ School attracts more than 3,000 students and visitors yearly from all 50 states and many foreign countries.

“We have over 250 workshops and classes a year for fine arts programs for adults,” spokesperson Skye Fallon says. “Our instructors are from around the nation and world, in some cases. We offer oils, acrylics, drawing and sculpture — almost anything you can think of. We don’t have pottery wheels or anything like that. We have sculptors who cut.”

Children ages 6 to 18 can partake in their own programs.

“They’re not like arts and crafts,” Fallon says. “A lot of parents send their kids to an arts and crafts camp. The kids have a real artist experience. They get the real tools the artists here use. It’s really neat. With COVID, we had camps all the way through both summers and gave children their own artist space, table, easel and social distanced with their own little arts studio. There were 10 to 12 people to a room.”

Some students may not be able to receive this education without assistance. Proceeds from Beaux Arts are vital to supporting these programs.

At Beaux Arts, attendees can bid on the Beaux Arts signature painting, Timothy Horn’s “Two Bedroom Ranch,” an 18-by-24 oil painting created exclusively for the event.

Horn — a leading landscape painter whose subject matter often includes structural elements such as vintage buildings and vehicles — is an instructor at SAS. His paintings are as much about the subjects he paints as they are about the effects of light within a particular scene. He won numerous awards, has been featured in many high-end art magazines and is represented by four galleries.

In addition to the auction, guests can also purchase tickets to win the 2021 signature raffle sculpture, an enchanting piece by Sandy Scott. “Pacer” is an 11-by-13-by-5 bronze sculpture of a Standardbred horse captured in its “pace” gate. Scott is a master sculptor whose art graces many well-known venues across the United States, including the Clinton Library, which showcases her magnificent “Presidential Eagle.”

The Beaux Arts auction begins at noon Wednesday, November 10, and ends 6 p.m. Saturday, November 13. Each day, interactive activities will take place on social media, including artist interviews, studio tours and the opportunity to win “door” prizes.

“Prior to COVID, we were giving about $75,000 a year in scholarships,” Fallon says. “They’re based on need and merit. We have really supportive artists who teach here.”   

Beaux Arts 2021

WHEN: Noon Wednesday, November 10, to 6 p.m. Saturday, November 13

WHERE: Virtual, scottsdaleartschool.org

COST: Free registration

INFO: scottsdaleartschool.org