World Series of Poker Inspires Pals to Gamble on Artist & Friend - Kim Luttrell Launches Company and Exhibition at the International Artexpo, NY
A group of Kentucky high school friends are coming together across the country to invest in and promote friend and artist, Kim Luttrell. After seeing an article in The Wall Street Journal about a patent attorney who won the World Series of Poker and funded his entry fee by selling shares of his stake in the tournament, friends were inspired to buy shares to form Luttrell Fine Art, LLC and fund the artists entry into the International Artexpo in New York to be held March 3-6. Friends are hoping to capitalize on the talent they see in Luttrell's work through this unprecedented business model in the art arena and gain a piece of the growing $60 billion dollar art industry.
New York (PRWEB) March 4, 2005 -- A group of Kentucky high school friends are
coming together across the country over 20 years later to invest in and promote
friend and artist, Kim Luttrell. As a result, Luttrell has launched her new
company, Luttrell Fine Art, LLC, and is exhibiting her work this weekend at the
International Artexpo at the Jacob Javits Convention Center in New York City,
March 3-6, 2005. Art expo jump-started the careers of some of the finest
American artists of the 20th Century, one of them being Andy Warhol. Luttrell
will be at booth #2812 throughout the show.
Luttrell attended the Artexpo
as a spectator for the past four years and knew she needed to be an exhibitor in
order to take her career to the next level. After conducting research with
various artists, she knew the results were promising. However, the financial
commitment was daunting. The right amount of work, appropriate set up and
suitable promotional tools seemed prohibitive to Luttrell.
Luttrell’s
high school friend, fellow New Yorker and avid collector, Amy Wilson, also
attended the 2004 International Artexpo and felt this was the next step for the
artist. Wilson read an article that appeared on June 1, 2004, in The Wall Street
Journal about a patent attorney who won the World Series of Poker. This savvy
poker player funded his entry fee by selling “shares” of his stake in the
tournament. After his big win, investors were paid a percentage of his winnings.
Wilson was inspired that she could establish something similar for Luttrell to
exhibit at the Artexpo.
On a trip home to Henderson, Kentucky, shortly
following the article, Wilson informally presented the concept to friends and
high school classmates of Luttrell who enthusiastically encouraged and began the
venture. Five-hundred $100 shares were sold to launch Luttrell.
Beyond
their financial investments, several contributed their professional services for
additional stock. The long-time Kentucky-based friends have joined with some of
Luttrell’s oldest collectors in New York and Connecticut, consisting of
investment bankers, real estate investors and company presidents.
“I
have realized that many people come in and out of your life and the people you
want around you are those you can trust,” said Luttrell. “I am excited about
taking my work more broadly worldwide with the help and support of those most
true to me.”
The 39-year-old Luttrell is not unfamiliar to bankrolling
her art career with the help of her Kentucky friends and associates. In 1983, as
Luttrell was graduating from high school, she created a series of works
depicting the Kentucky Derby and horse racing. Luttrell ingeniously sold these
as prints to fund her college education at the Ringling School of Fine Arts, in
Sarasota, Florida.
Luttrell’s body of work includes painted works on
paper mounted to canvas that presents an appearance of motion. Additionally each
section within the piece occasionally reveals an isolated scene. Luttrell has
also produced labor intensive woven paintings that are a tribute to the
handicraft and age-old tradition of weaving used by early 20th century
settlement workers from her home state of Kentucky. Along with these latest
works, are her abstract forms using paint chips which hold the viewer’s
attention by creating shapely waves of infinitesimal colors and compelling
intensity.
Because Luttrell remains connected to her roots in Kentucky,
she will be showing some works at the International Artexpo depicting scenes
from the state. Luttrell recently developed a series of etchings,
photo-etchings, lithographs and serigraphs at the famed Arts Students League in
New York to exhibit at the Artexpo. She will be premiering her works on giclee
prints as well.
Luttrell moved to New York City in 1991 with $600 and a
dream. Once in New York, Luttrell evolved into a full-time career of creating
original mixed-media art and began by selling her art on the streets of
Manhattan neighborhoods to build her notable clientele. Since 1998, Luttrell has
achieved numerous solo and group shows throughout New York that has generated a
notable following; selling her work for as much as $32,000.
“For an
artist, it takes a little more determination to get to the places they want to
go,” says Luttrell. “But knowing that on a small scale, on the streets of New
York where there is so much competition, I was able to survive, allows me to
feel hopeful that I will be able to make it in today’s art world. Certainly,
time will tell, but I remain steadfast in reaching my dreams with the support of
so many that believe in me.”
Luttrell Fine Art, LLC. Kim Luttrell creates
original mixed-media art using a vivid palette, conspicuous textures and
arresting themes. Her works are displayed in corporate and private collections
throughout the U.S., Holland, Israel, Australia, Argentina, England, Brazil,
China, Japan and Republic of Guinea and hang among other well-known artists such
as Dali, Picasso, Winston Churchill and Anthony Quinn. Notable collectors range
from Anna Strasberg, widow of renowned actor and teacher, Lee Strasberg, of the
Theatre Institute in New York and California to Kentucky’s own Academy Award
winning, Patricia Neal. Luttrell has participated in solo and group shows in New
York and was a featured artist in a national publication show house, the House
& Garden Havemeyer Mansion in New Jersey. An Australian filmmaker also made
Luttrell the topic of an independent documentary which has been recently added
to the permanent archives of the Library and Research Center of the National
Museum of Women in the Arts in Washington, D.C. For more information: www.luttrellfineart.com
.
International Artexpo, New York. The only U.S. based international
event connecting artists, galleries, and art publishers with more than 40,000
trade buyers and collectors. The Artexpo strengthens business relationships and
enables artists to explore new market opportunities with qualified buyers from
North America, Europe, Latin America, Asia, the Middle East, Africa and other
regions. For more information: www.artexpos.com .
Contact:
Leanne
Banna-Pritchett
Luttrell Fine Art
270.831.0576
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Source: http://www.prweb.com/releases/2005/3/prweb214092.htm