Downtown Austin, Texas. Photo by Carlos Alfonso.
When thinking of art in Texas, a lot comes to mind. The state is larger than life, and so is its art scene. Take, for instance, the Dallas Arts District, a creative and cultural haven where collectors will find visual arts institutions such as the Nasher Sculpture Center and the Dallas Museum of Art. The latter houses a collection of more than 25,000 works of art from all cultures and time periods, including a robust contemporary art collection, and holds exhibitions throughout the year. An array of performing arts venues like Dallas Black Dance Theatre, the Dallas Opera and the Dallas Symphony Orchestra round out the creative atmosphere of the district.
Dallas Arts District. Courtesy Visit Dallas.There’s no doubt one of the most vibrant and eclectic cities in Texas and quite possibly the entire country is Austin. Exploring the city, collectors might stumble upon the Blanton Museum of Art, home to the nation’s largest University-owned collection on exhibit or the Contemporary at the Jones Center, showcasing the work of both upcoming and established artists. There’s also Big Medium, a non-profit organization that supports the visual arts in Austin and in Texas as a whole. The organization holds events like the East Austin Studio Tour, the Texas Biennial and the West Austin Studio Tour. 
The vibrant and artsy Deep Ellum neighborhood in Dallas. Photo by Corey Collins.Moving to the dense city of Houston houses more than a dozen museums, among them the Museum of Fine Arts Houston and Contemporary Arts Museum Houston. This October in Houston is the annual Texas Contemporary, a modern and contemporary fine art and design fair showcasing the region’s top galleries and designers. The 2022 fair will also continue to highlight its curated Focus: Design platform, which shines a spotlight on top makers and designers from around the world.
Among the many other institutions, galleries and artists who dwell in Texas are Chris Van Loan Sr., Barbara Mauldin, Nancy Balmert, Southwest Gallery, Thornwood Gallery and Domont Studio. Read on to learn more about them.
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Barbara Mauldin
www.barbaramauldinart.com
Represented by Gallery 330
www.gallery330.com
Barbara Mauldin and her husband Chuck moved to Fredericksburg, Texas, in 2005 after many years in Louisiana. Soon afterward Mauldin began painting seriously. Her impressionistic paintings are characterized by color. “I like to emphasize the color that I see as a creative and emotional response to the landscape.” She works with a limited palette, using a small number of pigments to mix colors, resulting in beautiful color harmony. Mauldin also incorporates broken color to create more excitement in paintings, and she is working to generate bolder brushwork.
Barbara Mauldin, Spring Splendor, oil on linen, 28 x 22"
Barbara Mauldin, Four of a Kind, oil on panel, 6 x 8"
The artist has focused her attention on the Texas landscape, especially on the prickly pear cactus, which is found throughout the Texas Hill Country. It has a multitude of interesting colors, and the orientation of the pads create an interesting design of light and shadow, as well as a variety of cool and warm colors. During spring months cactus produce stunning blossoms of yellow, orange and coral—sometimes on the same plant. Other spring wildflowers often peek out around the cactus, and that provides more opportunity to consider additional color notes in the paintings.
Barbara Mauldin, Rio Grande Overlook, oil on panel, 9 x 12"
She enjoys plein air work, accepting the challenges of color, design and environment. She and her husband plan painting trips to beautiful areas throughout Texas and adjoining states each year. Texas abounds with variety and inspiration; there is always another painting just around the corner.
Mauldin is represented by Gallery 330 in Fredericksburg, Lee Bunch Gallery in Del Rio, and The Gallery at Brookwood in Brookshire.
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Christopher Van Loan Sr.
Hutto, TX, cvanloan99@gmail.com
www.cvl-art.com
Chris Van Loan Sr. was raised in Philadelphia but currently lives in the Austin, Texas, area. He has been involved in numerous artistic pursuits including, music, filmmaking and painting. A self-taught painter, Van Loan’s artwork is influenced by spray paint art, geometric abstractions and hip-hop music. Many of his pieces focus on different aspects of life or spirituality. “This focus is not by design but simply where the art takes me,” he says.
Christopher Van Loan Sr., Gabe, acrylic and spray paint on canvas, 20 x 16"
Christopher Van Loan Sr., Let me tell you a story, acrylic and spray paint on canvas, 24 x 18"
“My technique involves the use of home repair tools such as putty and drywall finishing knives, which are used to lay down the foundational colors and textures on canvas. After that layer has dried, I’ll add layers of spray paint that are applied using hard edge tape techniques and stencils. Store-bought stencils are usually modified or combined, and I may also use found objects such as the patterns in a milk crate or old light fixture as a stencil. This is followed by an additional application of acrylic applied with a brush or pen. This pattern will continue until the piece lets me know that it’s finished. Sometimes I’ll go too far and ruin a piece, but it’s the risk I take to create something that I feel is exceptional.”
Christopher Van Loan Sr., Moving energy, acrylic and spray paint on canvas, 24 x 36"
Van Loan’s artwork has been displayed in several exhibitions and hangs in collections at the Pfizer Corporation, Fox Broadcasting and the Freedom Mortgage Company. He is also a military veteran and has curated several exhibitions for military and veteran artists and their families.
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John J Domont
Domont Studio/Gallery
800 Hayes Street, Wichita Falls, TX 76301
(317) 691-9634
www.domontstudio.com
John J Domont is an internationally awarded artist and former artist ambassador for the United States. His paintings are poetic windows of our universal journey. They are an affirmation of the beauty and mystery of life. He is interested in creating artworks that express a peaceful and harmonic environment for contemplation of our spirit.
A look at Domont Studio/Gallery in Wichita Falls, Texas.
John J Domont, Journey #28, oil on linen, 72 x 57"
John J Domont, Journey #42, oil on linen, 36"
Domont has spent his life as a working artist. He is inspired by the garden of life and expresses his joy in multiple genres. After 27 years of managing his own gallery in Indianapolis, he relocated to Wichita Falls three years ago. His maternal grandmother was a native Texan. Domont is experienced working with large canvases and is available for commissions. The Domont Studio/Gallery is located within his studio and open by appointment.
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Nancy Balmert
www.nancybalmert.com
Nancy Balmert splits her time between Houston and her hometown of Seattle. She’s trained under Dalhart Windberg, honored as Artist of Texas and well-known for his landscape paintings. Recently Balmert was named one of “50 Contemporary Artists to Invest In.” 
Nancy Balmert, Rosa Sunsprite, oil on canvas, 16 x 20"
Balmert is known as “The Queen of Flowers,” and the natural beauty and colors of flowers make them her favorite subject. She says, “I love detail and the challenge of the intricacies of painting difficult subjects like flower petals in morning sun with shadows—things that many artists find challenging.” The subjects of her floral and landscape paintings come from photos she’s taken in her travels around the world. She’s painted roses from Victoria, British Columbia; poppies from Beverly Hills, California; and azaleas from the Margaret River in Australia.
Nancy Balmert, Topeka Garnet Peony, oil on canvas, 24 x 24"
Nancy Balmert, Vintage Red, oil on canvas, 10 x 10"
“In the summer, I love taking the float plane from Seattle up to Victoria, where there are flowers in bloom everywhere and wonderful sunlight to make them stand out.” As much as she likes flowers, Balmert is a very versatile artist. From photos she’s taken in her travels, she’s painted canals from Venice, thatched roofs from the Cotswolds, castles from Scotland and beaches from Hawaii. Lately, with Covid confining her to her studio, Balmert has been working on a series of still life paintings featuring a brandy snifter accompanied by various flowers or fruit.
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Southwest Gallery
4500 Sigma Road, Dallas, TX 75244
(972) 960-8935, www.swgallery.com
An interior view of Southwest Gallery’s Contemporary Room.
Southwest Gallery, Playful Shapes, acrylic on canvas, 80 x 50", by Tony Saladino.
Southwest Gallery offers Dallas’ largest collection of fine 19th- to 21st-century paintings and sculptures, while servicing the art needs of Dallas for more than 50 years. The beautiful gallery represents hundreds of respected and established artists with thousands of pieces of stunning works from antique to contemporary art with a full-service framing department, all in a space larger than 16,000 square feet. The gallery staff provides design expertise that helps clients maximize value and selection of their art purchases. Finding your style, whether your collecting experience is that of beginner or the most seasoned, is the gallery’s primary focus. The gallery family also includes Kittrell/Riffkind Art Glass, showcasing amazing examples of glasswork sculptures that provides another opportunity to add innovative pieces to any collection.
Southwest Gallery, Show Off, oil on board,26 x 15", by Harold Kraus.
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Thornwood Gallery
2643 Colquitt Street, Houston, TX 77098
(713) 528-4278
www.thornwoodgallery.com
An indoor look at Thornwood Gallery in Houston.
Bronze sculpture by Mark Yale Harris, represented by Thornwood Gallery.
With locations in Houston’s Gallery Row and Santa Fe, New Mexico’s historic Canyon Road, Thornwood Gallery is a full-service gallery assisting in building and maintaining a fine art collection. Since 2000, Thornwood Gallery has earned a reputation for placing high-quality artwork by international and national artists for residences, corporate offices, and hotels.
The gallery’s extensive inventory represents a wide variety of styles, from abstract to impressionism to realism by more than 60 artists. They also provide complimentary art consulting and advisory services for collectors of modern and contemporary art, including paintings, photography and sculpture. They aim to offer objective, professional advice for new and experienced collectors alike. —
Thornwood Gallery represents more than 60 artists.
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