I asked the Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette for permission to share the printed pages here, and they said yes. So here they are!
"'Chockablock' with talent" by Monica Hooper, in What's Up!, September 20 to 26, pages 4 and 5.
Monica's feature dives into the scale of the regional show, 102 pieces selected by curator Kathy Thompson from 659 submissions, and spends time highlighting the creative platform we are building in Northwest Arkansas.
After I delivered the animation to the gallery, Kate and I had the chance to meet Monica during the gallery's art drop-off, and we got to share our story about moving our studio from Fort Worth to Bentonville in June, building an art business in the area, and bringing our hand-illustrated animated series, BizarreBeasts, to life.
The article highlights my award from Decentralized Pictures to create family-friendly content for their upcoming streaming platform (DCP+), with Kate and I working side-by-side to produce the series.
Monica also covers the story behind All Cooped Up itself: how the chickens were built from the animated series assets as a subtle nod to the Northwest Arkansas poultry industry, and how the piece extends directly into interactive gaming with All Cooped Up: The Game inside the BIZarcade at bizarrebeasts.io.
👉 Read it on nwaonline.com: Annual "Our Art, Our Region, Our Time" exhibit highlights 86 artists across mediums
👉 Read it on nwaonline.com: Annual "Our Art, Our Region, Our Time" exhibit highlights 86 artists across mediums
"ENTERTAINMENT: 'Our Art' exhibit opening at Walton Arts Center" by Eric E. Harrison, Sunday Entertainment, September 20, page 4E.
The second one is the Sunday listing, and it is the page I have been carrying around. All Cooped Up is named in it, and I am listed as a Bentonville artist, which four months after moving here is a sentence I did not expect to read about myself quite so soon.
👉 Read it on arkansasonline.com: ENTERTAINMENT: "Our Art" exhibit opening at Walton Arts Center
Thank you to Monica Hooper and to Eric E. Harrison for the coverage, and to the Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette for letting me share the pages here!
All Cooped Up is 123 hand-illustrated chickens in an 80-second seamless loop exhibiting on a 55" screen.
📍 Location: Alexander Gallery at the Porter Art Warehouse, 212 N West Ave, Fayetteville, AR
📅 Exhibition Dates: On view through December 20, 2026
🕚 Gallery Hours: 11 AM to 2 PM Monday through Saturday | 5 PM to 8 PM Thursday through Saturday
🎟️ Admission: Free
🕹️ Play the game: allcoopedup.bizarrebeasts.io
🎬 How it was made: How 123 Hand-Drawn Chickens Became a Gallery Installation
🖼️ Opening night: Opening Night Recap: "All Cooped Up" at Our Art 2026
Monica Hooper, "'Chockablock' with talent," What's Up!, Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, September 20 to 26, 2026, pages 4 and 5. nwaonline.com
Eric E. Harrison, "ENTERTAINMENT: 'Our Art' exhibit opening at Walton Arts Center," Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, Sunday Entertainment, September 20, 2026, page 4E. arkansasonline.com
Todd Gill, "Walton Arts Center announces artists for sixth annual regional exhibition," Fayetteville Flyer, August 26, 2026.
Printed pages shared with permission of the Northwest Arkansas Democrat-Gazette.
I'm the artist, animator, and creator behind BizarreBeasts ($BB), creating a universe where art and Web3 technology converge. This is where everything I am intersects: a lifelong artist captivated by darkly humorous art, a creative entrepreneur, a self-taught builder who coded 13 original games and a Web3 app, a musician performing original soundtracks, and a true BIZARRE believer in decentralized creativity.
This project was born from a vision of what's possible when an artist fully owns their creative universe, exploring the opportunities and economies that Web3 enables to build a legacy of creativity and freedom for myself and the BizarreBeasts community.
In early 2026, I walked away from a six-figure corporate position to create BizarreBeasts full-time and moved the studio to Bentonville, Arkansas. BizarreBeasts is an Arts3 Foundation A3 Startup Award recipient, earning $100K in funding for a ten-episode animated series currently in production, which will premiere on DCP+ at the platform's launch this fall as part of its opening slate. DCP+ is the streaming platform empowering independent creators from Decentralized Pictures.
My animation "All Cooped Up" was selected for Our Art 2026 at the Alexander Gallery, presented by Walton Arts Center in Fayetteville, one of 102 works chosen from the 659 submitted by 371 artists, on view September 25 through December 20.
For more on my transition to building BizarreBeasts full-time, see my previous update: Going Bizarre Full-Time!
Learn more about me or see the paintings, statement, and CV at dylanyarter.com.
BizarreBeasts is a hand-illustrated world of bizarre and funny characters I create from my studio in Bentonville, Arkansas. It started as ink drawings and paintings and has grown into an animated series, made with my wife, Kate, and coming to DCP+ with the support of the A3 Startup Award from the Arts3 Foundation, administered by Decentralized Pictures. There are also 13 original games, played more than 270,000+ times, and a kids' platform. Every character is drawn by hand.
BizarreBeasts Animated Series Coming Soon, Exclusively to DCP+!
Click here to visit the BizarreBeasts Miniapp!
Follow: Farcaster, X, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and LinkedIn.
Play: BIZarcade.
Shop: Shirts, Hats, Bags, Beanies, and more.
Stream: Spotify and more.
Explore: BizarreBeasts.io.
Token info: ($BB; CA: 0x0520bf1d3cEE163407aDA79109333aB1599b4004).
Disclaimer: This article is a marketing piece created to share information about the BizarreBeasts IP and onchain entertainment project. It is not financial advice. Always do your own research before making any investment decisions.