PRINCETON - The public is invited to the Prairie Arts Council’s January gallery art exhibit, “Paintings of Scottish Highlands and other Landscapes,” by artist Alan Stanley. The exhibit will be on display the next two weekends, Jan. 18-19 and 25-26 from 1-4 p.m.

Stanley currently lives in Sheffield after moving from the suburbs of Chicago to fulfill a lifelong dream of creating art full time. Stanley realized early in life that he had a talent for drawing and began winning drawing contests when he was in 3rd grade. He always took art classes in school and by high school his art really started to flourish. “That led to doing commission work for family and friends,” he said. “I went on to win the Art Award my senior year at Grapevine High in Grapevine, Texas and with that came a partial scholarship to the Dallas Fashion and Art Institute.”

As promising and as exciting as that was, life took Stanley in another direction. He began working while attending the local community college and soon realized that art would have to take a back seat to everything else. “So here I am today at a point in my life where I can now focus full time on my artistic endeavors,” he said.

Although he has worked in many mediums, Stanley’s preference is oils. He currently focuses on painting landscapes, medieval architecture and wildlife and likes to incorporate detail into his work. “That’s always been a part of my enjoyment of painting and drawing,” he said. “And I’m grateful to PAC for the opportunity to showcase my work and to become a part of the art community here in Bureau County.”

Since its formation in 1995, the Prairie Arts Council has sponsored hundreds of successful programs, workshops, musical and theatrical productions and visual arts exhibits for people of all ages and abilities. They are dedicated to the mission of increasing the vitality and diversity of arts programming in the community.