In this informal YouTube field‑trip, Christie Renee Hawkins of The Social Easel takes viewers on a live, handheld tour of artist Justin Gaffrey’s studio‑museum, accompanied by fellow creators Casey (Pizzazz Art Studio), Cindy Manley (Art Shattered) and Heidi Easley (Texas Art and Soul). Christie highlights Gaffrey’s signature use of thick, hand‑made acrylic paint applied with palette knives and his hands, noting that the paint took over 20 years to develop and gives the works a glossy, relief texture that often requires painting on wood boards rather than canvas. She walks through a variety of works—bird’s nest, whimsical animal scenes, landscapes, moons, poppies, irises, ocean‑scapes, and a dramatic wave—pointing out the three‑dimensional texture, the use of icing‑bag‑style swirls, and the overall “messy” yet intentional aesthetic. Throughout, Christie intersperses artistic advice about embracing mess, viewing a piece from multiple distances, and using texture for impact. She repeatedly directs viewers to her Instagram/Facebook stories and to Justin Gaffrey’s website (justingaffrey.com) for more content, ending the tour with a friendly sign‑off.
Chapters
Hey, it's Christie with The Social Easel, and I know you guys have already seen me a few times today, but I had to bring you along on this field trip. So I'm here with Casey from Pizzazz Art Studio and hand lettering and the Whatever Letter Club. I'm here with Cindy Manley from Art Shattered and Heidi Easley from Texas Art and Soul with my girlfriends and We are on a field trip. We are at the Justin Gaffrey Art Museum, and oh my gosh, I can't even— I can't even tell you guys. There's more on my Instagram story, so make sure you go over there. But I am going to flip the camera around and give you guys a tour. You can see the girls with me and tell them hi. But I'm obsessed. You guys know I love palette knife He does all of this art with a palette knife and his hands. He made his own paint, so this is not just modeling paste. And she was telling us even if you tried to recreate his paintings, they wouldn't look like his, they wouldn't have the same finish as his, because he worked for over 20 years to create all the paint that he uses in his paintings, his own acrylic paint that is this thick-bodied amazing glossy slice of heaven, and I'm going to show you guys. So we're going to go on a little field trip, and again, after this live, jump over to my Instagram or Facebook stories and you can see, you can see more. I could do this all day long. We're going to start with this little outside out here by the pond. Look at this. A bird's nest. And then come in here, he's got these dogs and bears and cakes. I don't know the story behind these, but look at this. I mean, this looks like he used the, um, you know, piping from an icing bag. The swirls that are in that, the star tip, icing tip. Isn't that amazing? Okay, so this is— if this is not your cup of tea, I'm gonna show you some other stuff because he does all different styles. Look at these landscapes. Look at this moon on this one. So just look at the texture. You guys know I'm always talking about texture. This is what you would call relief art. It is coming off the canvas. These are actually not even canvases. He paints everything on wood boards because the canvases are not strong enough to hold his acrylic paint. I love those. I love— look at those suns. I love them. Let's go check this room out. I haven't been in here yet. Now if you love flowers and you love the ocean, I want you to hang tight. We'll save it like it's the grand finale. This is all whimsical, just crazy fun stuff. But look at— he's got these awesome walls where he's got this art hanging. Look at this, how pretty is that? Then let's walk over here. Say hi, Heidi, Sandy. Look at how fun these are. Look at this all around his studio. Look at this, just thick dried paint. How pretty is that? It's like a little slice of heaven, right? Like, you can just be so messy. You guys always hear me tell you, like, embrace the messiness. That's what makes art so fun. Okay, I'm gonna keep on. We're gonna show you some flowers. We're gonna show you some oceanscapes. Okay, I love this wall, this one I'm getting ready to show you. You guys know I love, love, love my poppies. I've got some irises. Phyllis, I am always inspired and always playing. Yeah, but yes, this makes me want to go home and get my palette knives out and start playing some more. You guys asked to see the bird nest. Isn't that crazy? I did— this is an added bonus to the trip. I did not know we were going to get to go on an art field trip while we were here, so I'm a happy girl. You should just hear us, all 4 of us, coming in here oohing and aahing and just like totally in love. Look at this. You guys know I love painting the flowers like this, and I just do them with a paintbrush. Look at them with all this thick paint. Look at it up close. You would never know up close. This is what it looks like, and then you step back. It's just so amazing. I love this one. Okay, so this one I want you guys to see, and we're allowed to touch these. You can see the wood texture through here. You can see how smooth all of this is. And then look what he's done here. Look at this wave that he's got coming out. Now watch, I'm just going to keep backing away. What do I tell you guys when you're working on your art? You got to look at it from different vantage points. Step away from your art. What is it going to look like when it's hanging on the wall? What is it going to look like when you stand 6 feet away, 10 feet away, 20 feet away? And then what does it look like when you're right on your canvas? Look at this. Look at this wall. Look at this. Hey Karen, I can hear you. Oh my gosh, you guys, look at this one. It looks like this wave is like a big open mouth just eating. Look at it dripping off the bottom of this canvas. Now look over here. Up against the wall. Adriana, he made his own paint. This is acrylic paint and he made it. He worked on it for over 20 years to create his own paint. I'm going to— one more wall to show you. Layers and layers of thick thick paint. He did this all with a palette knife and his hands. Think of the inspiration you can get from this. I'm going to walk you outside really quick. How fun is that? So I hope you guys enjoyed that little field trip. Look at the walkway even to the building. So go look them up, Justin Gaffrey. I'm going to give you guys one more shot, justingaffrey.com. So I hope you guys had fun on our field trip. See you soon.
