Artists, patrons see mutual benefit from Sawdust benevolence fund auction
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In times of trouble, friends and family often offer their help, in any way they can.
Nearly 40 years ago, the tight-knit exhibitors at the Sawdust Art Festival found an impactful way to provide assistance to each other.
The artists benevolence fund, founded in 1987, has since served as a financial lifeline to the creatives when they need it most.
On a wooden deck against the backdrop of a waterfall on the festival grounds, hope continued to spring with a live art auction seeking to bolster the relief fund on Sunday. The annual event relies on donated artwork, with all of the proceeds going to the artists benevolence fund.
Trevor LePenske, a third-generation Sawdust exhibitor and a benevolence fund trustee, said more than 150 pieces, valued at over $45,000, were donated for the auction.
After a few hours — and some competitive bidding — the auction raised $18,110, said Sawdust marketing director Sara Moser.
An additional $2,570 was contributed to the fund through direct donations following its conclusion.
Christina Marquez, a San Bernardino resident, made the winning bid on several items. A regular participant in the auction, Marquez said she became involved after learning that the fund had helped a personal friend.
“I’ve been coming here for many years,” Marquez said. “This is a good cause. We had a friend, Donita Lloyd, who had cancer, and they helped her out with some of the fundraising. They gave her the funds to keep paying her rent and whatnot.
“We know it is a noble cause to come here and buy things, but I double down in that I choose pieces that are going to be gifts, whether it’s the bowl I got today — a beautiful glass bowl — for some friends that are getting married, or a Dodger print for a friend who’s a big Dodger fan.”
David Nelson, a 57-year exhibitor of the Sawdust Art Festival, which marked its 60th anniversary this summer, announced the items up for auction. John Tynan, vice president of the Third Street Writers, served as auctioneer.
“It was amazing,” LePenske said of the turnout. “It’s incredible. Every year, we try to bring in more and more people, and we had over 100 people pre-register to come for the auction this year, which is huge. It’s the biggest pre-registry we’ve had yet.”
Among the top items sold during the auction, a coffee table went for $1,700. Even the materials made for a bit of local history to take home.
“This was a donor who got some reclaimed wood from a eucalyptus tree that fell down here at the Sawdust that we had to take out, and they made this table out of it,” LePenske said. “It’s a beautiful table with resin.”
Ora Sterling, a 42-year exhibitor, provided a ceramic driftwood hanging to the auction. Some shoppers have come to call her creations “neighbor-friendly wind chimes,” a nod to their appearance and silent nature.
“I was here when the benevolence fund started, and it was presented as a wonderful opportunity to help other artists in need,” Sterling said. “I’ve donated a piece every year. I’ve been aware of a lot of artists — not just in the [fine] arts, but musicians and other areas of the arts — who’ve really needed the help that this fund provides.
“To me, it’s an honor to donate a piece, hoping that someone will bid on it, and the money will go to that good cause.”
One can often find a bargain. Some of the artists were seen bidding on their fellow exhibitors’ work.
“You’ll get prices that you’d never get anywhere else,” said Bruce Freund, a 44-year exhibitor. “Some of those prices for those pieces, whoo, I’m going, ‘I want to bid on them.’”
“I think it’s great for the patrons to be able to go out there and get this stuff at a fraction of the cost that it is,” he added.
Freund, a glass artist, has asked for and received help from the fund multiple times, including when he tore ligaments in an arm and, more recently, when he suffered heart problems that required hospitalization. The application process, he explained, is relatively comprehensive, inquiring into the applicant’s predicament, their bills and the impact of the setback.
“They’ve done it for a lot of people, anywhere from fire damage to flood damage,” he said. “Most of the time, it is injury. Blowing glass is physical. You can’t lift your arm, you’re not blowing glass.”
