PAST EXHIBITS: SEPTEMBER - OCTOBER 2024
LAND & SEA HERBARIUM
Work by Bryant Whelan
On Display: September 6 – October 25, 2024
Bryant Whelan’s artwork reflects her fascination with natural forms, their shapes and intrinsic beauty. Her mixed media process combines drawing and painting with stitching, botanic ecoprinting, photography, collage and printmaking on paper and fabric.
Eastern Shore Camera Club
14th Annual Photography Exhibit
On Display: September 6 – October 25, 2024
Providing members, from beginners to professionals, with educational and skill building opportunities in the art of photography. Membership in the Eastern Shore Camera Club is open to anyone with an interest in photography and all skill levels are welcome.
https://www.easternshorecameraclub.com
Congrats to the 2024 Exhibit Award Winners!
Best in Show: Mike Monlezun “Dressed to Thrill”
Best Color: Georgia Sims “Red-eyed Tree Frog
Best Black & White: Susan Buschfield “All Those Who Wonder…”
Fauna
First Place: Kathy Hicks “Raccoon”
Second Place: Mike Monlezun “Feeding the Future”
Third Place: Kathy Hicks “Bobcat”
People
First Place: Susan Powell Dupree “The Gathering”
Second Place: Jennifer Magli “Purveyor of Americana”
Third Place: Kenneth Yeaglin “Little Girl in Notre Dame”
Flora
First Place: Mona Denton “Woodland Bliss”
Second Place: Susan Powell Dupree “Milettia reticulata”
Scenic
First Place: Elmo Priest “Jenny Lake Vista”
Second Place: Debbie Godard “Colorado: Idaho Springs Waterfall”
Third Place: Elmo Priest “Reflections”
Other
First Place: Susan Buschfield”Madonna”
Second Place: Phyllis Crosby”2 ½ lbs”
Third Place: Lynn Oldshue”Pretty Wicked”
Thank you to this year’s Judges!
Nancy Raia
Artist in Residence, United States Sports Academy
Vincent Lawson
Photography Instructor at University of South Alabama, Professional Photographer
Rose Ann Haven
News Anchor at WKRG
ESAC STUDENT SHOW
On Display: September 6 – October 25, 2024
Work comprised by adult students within our 2024 Photography, Pottery, Oil Painting and Sumi-e classes. Curated by Sculpture Instructor Kim Bernadas, this show exemplifies the creativity and talents of our Academy.
Interested in taking a class? Fall Classes begin mid September! CLICK HERE
ARTSQUARED
24 ARTISTS. 12 X 12 ARTWORKS.
Online Art Auction & Exhibit on Display: September 6 – October 4, 2024
All proceeds benefit the Eastern Shore Art Center! CLICK HERE to see the full gallery and start placing bids.
Thank you to our exhibit and auction sponsor, Barr Group Mortgage!
PAST EXHIBITS: JULY - AUGUST 2024
WORKS BY JOHN ARMISTEAD
On Display: July 5 – August 29, 2024
“When I was a child growing up in Mobile, I often went with my family to my grandmother’s hometown, Linden, Ala., in Marengo County. On one of these trips when I was five, I looked out the backseat window and saw an old house, quite dilapidated, on a hill in the distance, and, being a city boy, I thought how wonderful it would be to live in an old house like that, surrounded by open fields and woods. That image made a template on my brain that would inform my painting for many decades to come.
My grandmother was an artist and when I was eight arranged for me to take art lessons from John and Jane Shaw in Mobile. The class was composed of high school and middle school students and I was by far the youngest. The Shaws had me work in charcoal and pastel for my first year. Then they started me painting in oil when I was nine. Our classes met every Saturday morning, most of the time in the studio behind their house, but occasional we made plein air trips, like to Spring Hill College or to farms in the countryside. I have no doubt my orientation toward representational painting was shaped by the Shaws.
This show at the Eastern Shore Art Center demonstrates my continued love of the old house sitting lonely in a field motif. Most of the paintings are of places in Mississippi and Alabama, but some reflect my travels, especially to Italy, and other places I have lived such as Hawaii. And then there was a few figures. I’ve always loved painted people.”
“IMPROVISATION: CONTEMPORARY QUILTS”
NANCY GOODMAN
On Display: July 5 – August 31, 2024
A collection of improvisational quilts. These works were constructed without the use of patterns or templates. They are unique works which express Nancy’s ideas about color, form and design.
ESAC STUDENT SHOW
On Display: June 7 – July 27, 2024
Work comprised by adult students within our 2024 Watercolor, Sculpture and Drawing classes. Curated by Sculpture Instructor Kim Bernadas, this show exemplifies the creativity and talents of our Academy.
Our next ESAC Student Show will take place September-October and will feature pieces by our Photography, Pottery, Oil Painting, and Sumi e’ classes.
Interested in taking a class? CLICK HERE
PAST EXHIBITS: MAY - JUNE 2024
WOMEN’S ART COLLECTIVE
On Display: May 3 – June 29, 2024
The Women’s Art Collective began as a group of Hattiesburg artist friends wishing to establish a community of support for themselves, their professional growth and their aesthetic development. During our monthly meetings we create a safe space for intellectual discourse on art, offer supportive critique and reflection on each others’ current work, and schedule regional exhibitions of WAC members. Established in 2011, we are 15 practicing artists whose work consists of ceramics, drawing, mixed-media, painting, photography, printmaking, sculpture, and fiber art.
Website: https://www.womensartcollective.com
WATERCOLOR & GRAPHIC ARTS SOCIETY OF MOBILE
On Display: May 3 – June 29, 2024
The Watercolor & Graphic Arts Society is probably the oldest arts organization in Mobile and one of the oldest in the state of Alabama. The Society began as an outgrowth of the celebrated Bayou Painters group on June 5, 1948. It was then known as the “Watercolor Society of Mobile” and was open to artists throughout Alabama. There were originally twenty-two members including Genevieve Southerland, Edmond deCelle, William Bush, and the late Bea Q. Tucker. Since then, many well known and well respected artists have become members. Records indicate that the graphic arts addition began in 1954. Today there are nearly one hundred members.
As a non-profit organization, the object of the Society is to create, through education, more interest in the media of watercolor and graphic arts, and to promote finer watercolor and graphic arts exhibitions by Alabama artists. The Society holds a minimum of two exhibitions annually, at least one of which is always juried.
Congratulations to the 2024 Exhibit Award Winners! Thank you to Lucy Gafford for judging this beautiful show.
Best of Show: Joann Cox “Clearly”
2nd Place: Melissa Root “Waterline #1: Alligator Bayou”
3rd Place: Anne Brooks “Cinnamon Fern”
Merit Award: Lydia Host “Portrait Study #1”
Best Color: Lisa Harrell “The Glory of Nature”
PAST EXHIBITS: MARCH - APRIL 2024
Members’ Juried Show // On Display: March 1-April 27, 2024
This annual exhibit showcases various work from the Artist Level Members and above of the Eastern Shore Art Association. 125 works were selected from over 250 entries by our esteemed judge Ulrika Matthiessen.
The show features pieces of all media, including painting, photography, pottery and more.
Special Thanks to our 2024 Juror & Judge: Ulrika Matthiessen!
Ulrika Matthiessen is a visual artist living and working in New Orleans, LA. She was born in Sweden and grew up in Mississippi during the 1960’s and 70’s. Moving between the culturally disparate environments of her Nordic homeland and the Deep South had a great impact on her artistic sensibility leading to an intense observation of people and their environment.
Mississippi Art Colony
75th Anniversary
On Display: March 1-April 27, 2024
The Smithsonian lists Mississippi Arts Colony as “the country’s oldest artist-run organization of its kind. Mississippi Arts Colony is guided by a collective of artists. Their activities are funded through fees from workshop sessions, grants from arts agencies, and generous contributions.
“Colony” is an invitation-only community providing arts learning experiences for adult artists. By providing week-long practicum experiences twice a year with a qualified facilitator, their goal is to help Mississippi artists develop their artistic abilities, build their professional skills, build community with other artists, and ultimately keep the arts scene thriving in Mississippi.
Each session offers an opportunity for attendees to submit work for the Colony Traveling Show adjudicated by the session’s guest artist. The current exhibit was curated by David Shevilno in April of 2023.
For more information about the Mississippi Art Colony, go to www.msartcolony.net.
PAST EXHIBITS: JANUARY - FEBRUARY 2024
POTTERS OF THE SOUTH
On Display: February 2 – 24, 2024
POTTERS OF THE SOUTH is an exhibition of the widely diverse clays, glazes, firing methods and techniques used to create work that express the potter’s ideas of clay’s limits and capabilities. These potters represent Alabama, Florida and Mississippi and are brought together by Maria Spies to display work during the month of February in conjunction with the 2024 Alabama Clay Conference which is held annually in Alabama.
Susie Bowman
Kim Bernadas
Maya Cantrell
Craig Chapman
Phillip Counselman
Steve Dark
Mark Isenberg
G Khalsa
Shelley Leigh
Jonathan Maddison
Barbara Nassar
John Oles
Maria Spies
Brenda Stokes
Jason Stokes
Marty Stokes
John Rezner
Takako Walker
Lisa Watson
“SOUTHERN SPIRITS:
Capturing the Essence of Home”
Banks Compton
On Display: January 5 – February 24, 2024
Banks Compton is a mural artist residing in Foley, AL. He focuses on creating beautiful works of public art that give a sense of the greater community. Several of his installations provide cultural markers of identity for life in the regional south. While he is known as a southern artist, Banks has also painted murals across the country.
“Southern Spirits: Capturing the Essence of Home” Is my autobiographical journey of finding home in a series of paintings and drawings, each serving as a visual poem that captures the nuances of my disrupted entry into adulthood, catalyzed by the impact of Covid-19, ultimately culminating in my heartfelt return to my roots in Alabama.
Within each painting, I weave tales of everyday life in the South, illuminating the inherent beauty that often goes unnoticed. These artworks are dramatized settings that accentuate epic narratives— stories of spiritual awakening, profound connections of love, and a genuine appreciation for the natural splendor that defines Alabama.
As you engage with the collection, I extend an invitation to not merely observe but to immerse yourself in the raw expression of openness and adventure embedded in each piece. “Southern Spirits” becomes a mirror reflecting the shared human experience, encouraging you to discover echoes of your own life stories within the vibrant landscapes, portraits, and illustrations of life in Alabama.
“Figuring It Out“
Rosanne McKenney
On Display: January 5 – February 24, 2024
Representational painter Rosanne Lillard Mckenney’s aim is to capture a simple moment of everyday life. She balances between revealing too much detail, and leaving parts unsaid. Inspired by Italian Renaissance painters and 19th century French, American and more recently Russian painters, she incorporates elements and techniques that made these artists distinctive. Working primarily in oil she tells a story. Mckenney occasionally incorporates abstract elements and symbolism into her pieces. She chooses the figure as her principal subject, because human gestures and expressions can say so much. The stories explore the essence of human experiences, often unresolved emotions, common through many cultures.
Raised by American parents in Italy, Rosanne learned to appreciate classical art without noticing. At 18 years when she moved from her childhood home, the ancient city of Naples, she realized how important art had been for her wellbeing. In university, Mckenney did not formally study art but from the first realization of the void left by leaving Italy, a land steeped in artistic beauty, she began a lifetime pursuit of painting, studying what made these classical pieces appealing over generations. Rosanne with her husband Jeff, moved to the Gulf Coast of Mississippi in 1990 where they started their family and the Christian organization that would support a Hospital, Children’s Center and School in Honduras. Over the past 23 years, they have lived and worked in Honduras, offering medical support at a mission hospital and school on the edge of the jungle. Living among the poor in an art-poor environment, intensified the need to pursue art. Rosanne paints in her studio in Honduras each day, before and after their busy surgery schedule, and teaches art History to Honduran students in person and on zoom when she is in the U.S.
Currently McKenney with her husband Jeff Mckenney a surgeon, share their time between Honduras and the Mississippi Gulf Coast with The Cornerstone Foundation, (Biloxi, MS). She paints every opportunity she has.
“Art and Addiction“
Ben Peabody
On Display: January 5 – February 24, 2024
Through his personal journey of recovery, Louisiana artist Ben Peabody has created a compelling series of work titled “Art and Addiction” depicting the complexities of addiction, treatment, and recovery.
PAST EXHIBITS: NOVEMBER - DECEMBER 2023
Annual Members’ Open Show
On display: November 3 – December 29, 2023
This annual exhibit showcases various work from Artist Level members and above of the Eastern Shore Art Association. Artists are encouraged to enter ONE original work done in any media. Works should not exceed 40 inches in any direction including frame. No theme.
OVER 75 ENTRIES!
5th Annual Plein Air Fairhope
On display: November 3 – December 29, 2023
Join us for a community celebration of painting in the great outdoors! 60 painters will be taking it to the streets – and the bay front pier!!
From sunrise to sunset, artists will set up throughout the city with portable easels, chairs, and umbrellas. Work created during the “paint out” will be on exhibit and available for purchase at ESAC. Wet Room paintings on display and available for purchase during the event week. Reception First Friday Art Walk November 4th. Exhibit November 3 – December 29, 2023.