Events

LAKELAND, FL – Dick Blandford brings a world of “fantasy and illusion” to The Loft
Art Gallery where his art will be featured through Nov. 30.
The show debuts during downtown Lakeland’s First Friday festivities on Nov. 1. A free
reception with live music, wine and hors d’oeuvres is scheduled for 6 - 9 p.m.
“Everybody’s vision comes from a different place when they create,” says David Collins,
owner of The Loft Art Gallery and Paint Along Studios. “Blandford is a self-taught artist
whose inspiration stems from past relationships. His work is colorful, abstract and linear
at the same time. It’s something we’ve never had in the gallery before.”
Blandford retired to Lakeland in 1991 with his business partner Hal Geres. He’s always
had an interest in art, but it wasn’t until the loss of loved ones – including Geres - that his
active pursuit in art began.
“Perhaps my ideas on art have changed since he passed,” says Blandford. “Perhaps my
art says I live in a world of fantasy and illusion, but I feel the greatest risk in life is to not
have lived at all. Life is like a coin, you can spend it only once.”
Come out to The Loft Art Gallery to experience for yourself the passion behind these
unique paintings. You might even find a spark that ignites your own creativity.
The Loft Art Gallery is located upstairs in Paint Along Studios in downtown Lakeland
at 123 S. Kentucky Ave. Hours are: Mondays, 9 a.m. to 10 p.m.; Tuesdays-Thursdays, 9
a.m. to 6 p.m.; Fridays 9 a.m. to 10 p.m.; Saturdays, 5-10 p.m. Call (863) 409-5771 for
more information or visit www.loftartgallerydowntown.com.