The Artists and & The Art
Friday Night Cocktail Party
6909 South Hampton Road
A compelling selection of paintings, free-standing sculpture, and wall mounted sculpture will welcome Black Tie Club International to our Friday evening cocktail party at the NEW Padilla Gallery. Located less than two minutes east of Hwy 67 - this singular live-work space will host BTCI members and guests both inside of the gallery, and outside on the lawn, weather permitting. Keep scrolling below to see some of Daniel's recent work, plus to learn more about the sculptors who will also showcase their creations during the Friday event.
PAINTER & SCULPTOR
DANIEL PADILLA
Daniel Padilla’s extraordinary paintings capture the essence of life through his unique treatment of light and dramatic use of color. He is intrigued by both abstract and representational elements that he
incorporates in his designs. His elegant compositions usually represent physical or imaginative places, often from dreams. He delights in creating works that capture emotional energy and spiritual light. Inspired by his love of music, Daniel uses long, expressive brushstrokes to create his passionate works of art.
Raised in Santa Rosa, Texas, Padilla began creating art at a very young age. Encouraged and supported by his artistic family, he excelled early on. He won his first award at only 12 years old, and earned a Bachelor of Fine Arts degree from the University of Texas- Pan American in 1994. After several years of teaching art to high schoolers, serving as an art auctioneer for Carnival Cruises, and creating and selling art, he opened his own art gallery in 1998 with his artist brother Manuel Padilla in Houston, Texas and called it DNM Art Group. The gallery was moved to Dallas in 2008 and was renamed Padilla Gallery. He opened a second location in McAllen, Texas in 2018 with his sister Naomi Padilla, also an artist.
Daniel is a highly respected and collected artist both in DFW and across the U.S. with important shows including the 2001 International New York ArtEXPO, the 2002 International San Francisco ArtEXPO and the 2014 Highpoint Furniture Market in North Carolina. More recently, in 2022, Padilla was selected to exhibit at the New York ArtEXPO in April then Art BASEL Miami in December and in 2023 he has done a line up of Art Festivals in south Florida including the Las Olas Art Festival, Coral Gables Art Festival and Coconut Grove Art Festival. Success in South Florida continues for Daniel Padilla, with Chasen Galleries in Sarasota representing Daniel's new work.
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Always evolving, he continues his artistic journey working on custom projects with interior designers
and special clients and is available for commissions.​
STONE & MELTAL SCULPTOR
CHASTITY HERNANDEZ
As an artist, Chastity Hernandez has always been drawn to art, creating, and all its wonders. Sculpture is where she has found the true desire that burns within—learning how to express in vivid, emotional color by pulling the spirit out of stone, and learning the fusion of metal.
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In creating, she finds mediation, inspiration, silent life lessons, and the clarity of following her own path. She conveys spirituality and hopefulness through BOLD abstract works. Once we learn to look within, heal, and open up, it’s amazing what comes forth.
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Chasity has cultivated the techniques of welding, chiseling stone, and painting with bold colors into her works. She hopes that by looking into her art, you can feel her passion and receive the message that is yearning to relate to you and your life. Art can transport you to another world.
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“I feel blessed to have found my path and the ability to express myself through the creative process we call art.” Works by Chastity Hernandez will be included in the exhibit planned for the Friday BTCI Cocktail Party.
JOQUIN SOTO
ARTIST STATEMENT
Disconnection is the feeling that I’ve felt most of my life. Growing up, I never had a good sense of belonging to any one culture, place, identity, or particular group. As an immigrant, Ive always had the feeling that I was inhabiting multiple worlds, while never calling one home.
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This feeling has transferred over in to my artwork, in my eternal journey of always giving something a home or purpose. My works are created from multiple materials, pieces, and repurposed items. Many of these materials are sometimes overlooked and discarded, as they have served their initial purpose. I feel I have a sense of purpose of giving an item a new light, and history. This can be in part due to my past experiences of searching connectivity, and wanting to belong and not be under-appreciated.
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My main source of inspirations comes from my own personal history, and experiences. As I try to reconnect with my own identity, I’ve learned to express my culture through my art. Each piece I make is a bridge of experience that I take from one piece to the next. This has served as my main driving force to want to be a better artist, and learn from my mistakes. In the end I wish to honor my past, enjoy the present, and prepare for the future through my art.
REBECCA LOW
MASTER SCULPTURIST
Rebecca Low was born in the small farming community of Tarkio, Missouri, in 1952. She graduated from Tarkio High School and spent her first two years of college attending DePauw University in Greencastle, Indiana. After transferring to Iowa State University in Ames, Iowa, she graduated with a degree in Applied Art with an emphasis in interior design. She practiced interior design in Nebraska and Texas for twenty five years before closing her business to pursue her artistic career as an artist in metal.
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In 1993, Rebecca and her dog, Pepper took morning walks and found all kinds of car parts and metal objects lying on the roadside. Wondering what to do with them, Pepper told Rebecca to take a welding course and create a piece of art. She did. What began as a hobby has turned into her profession.
Most of Rebecca’s art is just for fun and rarely philosophical. It tends to either appear off balance (a little like the artist) or it has motion or both. Rebecca will often use wind, water and/or fire to enhance her sculptures. Her works are constructed by using found objects that create an impressionistic style while the use of stainless, copper, aluminum, brass and steel tend to create a more realistic style. Sometimes pieces are left in their natural finish. Others, she paints in high-end automotive paints, because of their depth of color. Some works are powder coated, plated or a combination thereof. Most of Rebecca’s sculptures are large, ranging from 3 feet to well over 20 feet. Virtually all of her art is one-of-a-kind and is ideal for either interior or exterior installations and corporate or residential collections. Daniel Padilla recently showcased his work at the Rebecca Low Gallery in Ft. Worth. In turn, Rebecca has now consigned work to the Padilla Gallery just in time for the BTCI Friday Night cocktail party.
