Contact:
Dan Carpenter
(325) 673-4587
Marketing@thegracemuseum.org

Grace to host first-ever museum exhibition of Automotive Fine Arts Society

Abilene, TX (June 3, 2008) - The Grace Museum is pleased to announce that beginning June 12, they will host the first-ever museum exhibition of the art of the prestigious members of the Automotive Fine Arts Society (AFAS).

Zero to 60 will include a collection of paintings and sculpture from AFAS, which was established in 1983 by a group of automotive fine artists who are acknowledged by critics to be among the best in their field. Today membership is the composed of 29 active members selected from the world's finest automotive artists.

Members work in many diverse mediums including oil, watercolor, acrylic, wood, gouache, pen-and-ink, clay and metal.

"The paintings and sculptures of the AFAS relate their common love affair with the automobile and its history, featuring the classics from the past as well as current trends in automotive design on the street as well as the race track," said Judy Deaton, Curator of Art & Exhibits for The Grace. "The subject may be the same but the results vary from the photorealism to energetic abstractions and everything in between. Jags, coups, convertibles, woodies, roadsters, Duesenbergs, dragsters and Vettes - the romance of the road is in excellent and very talented hands."

For the last 20 years, the AFAS has exhibited their work annually at the Pebble Beach Concours d´Elegance and the Amelia Island Concours d´Elegance. The installation at The Grace Museum will be the first time many of these artist had been shown in a museum not devoted to expressly to automobilia.

"The exhibit will be a milestone in recognition of these artists in a gallery solely devoted to exhibiting fine art," said Deaton.

Zero to 60 will open June 12 in The Grace's Main Gallery. The exhibit will be on display through September 7.

The Grace Museum is open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday; and from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. every Thursday. Admission is free Thursday evening after 5 p.m.

For more information, call 325-673-4587.

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The Grace Museum's exhibitions and educational programs are supported in part by grants from the Texas Commission on the Arts, the Abilene Cultural Affairs Council, the City of Abilene, Taylor County, and the Downtown Revitalization Program of the Tax Increment Finance District. The Grace Museum is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Built in 1909, The Hotel Grace served as a rest stop for railway travelers. The mission-style building was renovated and re-opened in 1992 as The Grace Cultural Center. The Grace Museum , a non-profit organization, now serves as a home to a Children's Museum, History Museum , and Art Museum. At 55,000 sq. ft., The Grace Museum is the 10th largest general museum in Texas . The Grace Museum is the cornerstone of cultural arts and education in West Texas.