How a Viral Facebook Post Recovered This Missing Painting

Drake Arnold and his painting at Suwannee Hulaween

An uplifting example of the power of social media

When I saw Drake Arnold’s Facebook post saying his painting Giver of Light had been stolen, I remembered being captivated by it at Suwannee Hulaween. It stood alone so I didn’t get the chance to acquaint myself with the artist, but I saw the post because it was shared by a friend who’d also been to the festival.

I felt dismay and disappointment hearing that this happened at what had been such a beautiful fest (and knowing that it happens at other fests, too). So when I saw the painting again at Bear Creek Music Festival, back in the hands of its creator, I was delighted and intrigued. I wanted to know how it had found its way home.

I spoke to Drake and learned that the Facebook post had actually played a big part in the painting’s return, a bigger part than even he thought it would.

St. Pete Artist Has This Advice on Becoming a Live Painter

Jerry Cahill's art on display at Blackstock Music Festival.

"Be persistent."

I had the chance to sit down with St. Petersburg artist Jerry Cahill while I was volunteering in the art gallery at Blackstock Music Festival. When we spoke, he had just quit his job, moved out of his house, and was planning to take his work on the road as a full-time artist.

He said that it was a good time in his life, that he had just gotten his A.A. degree, and that he had saved up some money in preparation. "... I gotta figure out what I want to do with the rest of my life, so I'm kind of taking a break on everything."

When I asked him to give some advice to upcoming/beginner artists, he had this to say to anyone wanting to get into painting live:

"Sally Can't Dance" — Sarah Goodyear Art

Over the past few years, I have had the pleasure of getting to know an amazing artist, Sarah Goodyear, who I first met at Pink Moon Festival in 2010. At the time, she was living in, and selling her art out of, her van. Since then, she has graduated from an unofficial to a very official vendor — I caught her selling from a booth at Electric Forest ‘12 and a double-wide booth at Aura MusicFestival ‘13.

Sarah has been an artist her entire life. She started out drawing and made the move to painting at the age of 19. After two years of college, questioning the amount of money she was spending on a degree that she wasn’t even sure how she’d use (biology, to be specific), she “took some time off” and poured herself completely into her art. She started painting constantly and has been doing so ever since.

Seeing other artists selling prints at festivals, Sarah got the idea to make her own, and she set up shop for the first time at Pink Moon. She continued on the festival circuit, and “bootlegged” several in 2011. She managed to get booths at a few small festivals, but stayed mostly informal, setting up at campsites and in high-traffic areas.

Over time, though, the frustrations of being an unofficial vendor — being pestered by security, on the spot logistics, etc. — pushed her to take the step and become official. “It really pays off,” Sarah says. “You get a lot more attention, and you’re guaranteed a central spot where everybody is.”

Sarah currently lives in Boone, N.C., and still sells on the street to local tourists and college students. Her friends call her Sally, hence the name “Sally Can’t Dance,” which is also the name of a Lou Reed album. She says she gets inspired when people compliment her existing art; it gives her the push to keep making more. “I just pull inspiration from wherever, ‘cause I pretty much paint on a daily basis, so it just comes out of my brain.”