Art auction gets ready for 10th year

While the Rist Canyon Volunteer Fire Department celebrates 30 years of service to the community, it also marks the 10th anniversary of the Richard Schmid Fine Art Auction, its key fund-raising event.

In 1996, world-renowned artist Richard Schmid, who was a resident of the community at the time, realized his volunteer fire department needed more to survive and grow than small annual donations. He will return to Bellvue this Labor Day weekend to attend the anniversary event on Sept. 4.

Since its humble beginnings with 15 works, over 600 pieces of original art have been auctioned for over $634,000, generating over a quarter-million dollars for the all-volunteer fire department that protects people and property in 100 square miles of rugged foothills west of Bellvue.

Over a hundred volunteers from all walks of life work throughout the year to make this daylong fund-raising event a success. Last year the auction and mountain festival attracted more than 3,500 people. The art auction alone requires a 160x50-foot tent to accommodate the artwork for the live and silent auctions and the hundreds of bidders who attend.

Over the years proceeds from the auction and festival have been used to build fire stations and buy vital equipment the fire department wouldn't otherwise be able to afford. Additions to the department include two new fire trucks, two new fire stations, expansion of another station, modern radios and pagers for firefighters, new medical equipment and "Jaws of Life" extraction gear.

Although Schmid has since moved to Vermont, he remains deeply committed to the auction that bears his name. He believes that artists have an obligation to use their talents for the greater good. For the 10th anniversary he is contributing a piece that would have a gallery price of over $60,000, as well as another original work.

The first art auction grossed just over $19,000. Schmid's painting sold for $15,000 to a cell phone bidder from Salt Lake City, despite the fact that the auctioneer had to stand on top of a car, hold up the cell phone, and pray for an uninterrupted connection. These days the volunteers run a telephone bank to take bids from around the world.

The auction committee receives so many requests from artists who want to participate that every year they have to rent a bigger tent. A silent auction was added in 2001 as a way to offer even more art, better accommodate the growing number of artists who wanted to be included, and make sure the auction continues to offer the work of promising new artists.

Unlike many auctions, where 30 to 40 percent of the art fails to make its minimum, all 75 pieces in the Rist Canyon live auction will sell (there are no minimums). In the silent auction, however, artists can establish an estimated retail value, and minimums are set at half of that amount.

Last year the live auction sold 76 pieces. Another 52 works were sold in the silent auction. Total auction sales were a record-setting $165,000. This year's sales goal is $200,000. The money is earmarked for a new, high-tech fire truck equipped with a state-of-the-art foamer, which will help the fire department apply foam to homes and historic structures to give them a better chance of surviving a wildfire.

More information about the works offered in this year's auction will be available at www.rcvfd-richard-schmid-art-auction.com.