Art aficionado bargain hunters will have a chance to pick up an original painting or sketch by prolific Albert Lea artist, Lloyd Herfindahl at the Freeborn County Arts Initiative gallery on from noon to 4 p.m. Tuesday and from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. during Wind Down Wednesday.

An individual with Herfindahl connections was given more than 40 original pieces 20 years ago after the artist’s death, and has recently given them to the FCAI. Members then decided to offer them to good homes in exchange for a donation to the organization.

“These are not prints,” said FCAI president Susanne Crane, “all are original.” Herfindahl, an internationally known artist, often used local citizens as models for biblical and historical figures depicted in murals so shoppers might recognize friends and relatives in these pictures.

Some pieces are charcoal sketches, some are watercolors and a few are oil paintings.

Some are complete and signed, and others were abandoned mid-project. A couple pieces are painted on the back of a Herfindahl signed and numbered print of another of his works, and a few have original art on both sides of the paper or canvas. It’s a mixed bag, and the collection is well worth checking out.  Also on display is the “Heart of the Heartland” exhibit that opened Saturday.