Red leather booth

Twenty-two talented local artists will converge on the Museum in downtown Kitchener this Saturday (January 19, 2013) for the second annual artist showdown: The Brush Off:  Live Painting Competition.

Artists compete in five feisty and intensely scrutinized rounds of art making while art-loving spectators observe the creative process in action. At the end of each round, the audience votes on their favourite pieces in a contest of elimination until only one remains: crowned the artist of the night.

All the pieces are auctioned off at the end of the evening and the proceeds benefit the Museum.

I went to the event last year and it was amazingly fun and inspirational to see such talent played out in a very un-artist like terrain. (How do they concentrate with 400+ people milling about them while they make art?)

Crowd at the Brush Off 2012

Here is what I know: The paintings will be impressive, the music will be good, the bar will be well stocked and the crowd will be jazzed.  You should go. Really.

You’ll also get free admission to the current Museum exhibit: The Treasures of China.

To get you excited, here are the participating artists:

*Jennifer Gough was recently profiled here on redleatherbooth.com

Have you been to this event before or something like it? What did you think? Would you recommend it to friends?