August 28, 2008. LEXINGTON, NC. Art LaMay, the legendary award winning wildlife and one of the best selling artists of all time, has teamed up with NC Ducks Unlimited's Artist of the Year Mike Helsabeck to produce a new series of reproductions entitled, "The Players." "The Players" is a light hearted take on LaMay's highly successful original series "The Boys", "The Girls", and "The Kids."
LaMay has received international acclaim receiving such honors as the Ducks Unlimited’s International Artist of the Year and Featured Artist at both The Southeastern Wildlife Exposition in Charleston, SC and The Easton Maryland Wildlife festival, the largest wildlife expo in the US. LaMay has sold hundreds of thousands of reproductions in his storied 30 year career and his gallery near St. Augustine Florida is visited by scores of collectors each year.
Helsabeck, the 2007, 2008 and 2009 NC Ducks Unlimited Artist of the Year, was introduced to LaMay during the 2006 Rappahanock Waterfowl Festival on the Chesapeake Bay. Soon after, LaMay held a rare private showing at The Mike Helsabeck Collection in Lexington, NC and it was there the idea for "The Players" was formulated. For the next six months sketches and drafts were sent back and forth between LaMay's studio in Florida to Helsabeck's studio in NC.
This is the first "duet" of its kind between two award winning artists and the variety of subject matter will surely appeal to a large audience. For more information, contact Susan Hargett @ 336-249-DUCK(3825) or go to www.mikehelsabeck.com.