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ROSES ARE CADMIUM RED Marissa Vogl Justin Giunta Jocelyn Châteavert Kerry Simmons Karen Vournakis John Thompson Anna Kasabian Brandon Donahue Glory Day Loflin Joe Walters Dixie Dugan Teresa Roche
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57 ARTS FESTIVAL ROUNDUP ArtFields North Charleston Arts Festival
Artisphere Piccolo Spoleto Outdoor Art Exhibition
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AWAKE Taylor Faulkner
ART SHOWS
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Susan Perkins | Visual Vigil
Paige Feigly Smythe
Fred Wilson | Afro Kismet
Kristy Bishop
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BEHIND THE WALL
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1858 PRIZE FOR CONTEMPORARY SOUTHERN ART Donté K. Hayes Amy P. Coy Forum
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Is there a muse any more universal than the flower? Perhaps most famous for painting the subject is Georgia O’Keefe. And though her intended symbolism gets debated, one thing seems true: O’Keefe demanded the viewer see the flower — really see it. The following visual artists are florally influenced, portraying blooms for a number of different reasons; their work may evoke joy or luxury or is simply meant to be beautiful. Here, we arrange a dozen different ways to see flowers. by Katie Kerns Geer Spring 2020 | 13
Marissa Vogl Marissa Vogl is neither an abstract painter nor one who paints representationally; she is both, and she says that bouncing back and forth between the two approaches keeps her sane and satisfied. There is consistency in Vogl’s work, however: A sense of overwhelming joy percolates from the rich colors and energetic brushstrokes. This perhaps is most true of her abstract interpretations of flowers. “A floral arrangement, no matter how exquisite or humble, is always going to ignite pure joy within me,” says Vogl, who is a co-owner of Meyer Vogl Gallery. “My art is simply about painting happy energy intuitively.” 14 | theartmag.com
Vogl’s abstract paintings suggest their floral nature through sweeping shapes, unrestrained marks, and other botanic hints. Her spring-like color palette feels just right, and it’s clear she has a relationship with color that’s almost clairvoyant. “Combining a subject I adore with a technique that evokes joy, creates a tangible canvas of happiness. Simple, pure joy. What more could I want to paint?” MEYER VOGL
122 Meeting St, Charleston meyervogl.com | 843.805.7144 @meyervoglgallery
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Justin Giunta Justin Giunta paints flowers. He also paints other subjects, makes jewelry, and draws — and the artist has worked in fashion and interior and industrial design. Giunta crisscrosses back and forth between a variety of artistic universes and often interweaves those universes together. But he keeps returning to painting flowers. “I have continually explored the motif of floral painting, returning to this theme as a vehicle to parallel ideals held by contemporary society,” Giunta says “In my work, I honor traditional techniques while introducing modern materials and scale to bring new energy to this familiar genre.” Like his path as an artist, the New York City-based artist’s floral paintings are
often unpredictable. Most feel ornate, and according to Anne Siegfried, owner of The George Gallery where he is represented, his work plays on themes of luxury. He works with oils, but also sometimes acrylics and sometimes pen and ink—some pieces even include jewelry or sparkly adornments. Siegfried adds, “The present collection of drawings and paintings explore the distinct themes of spirituality and commodity as constructed by the past and reinvented with a modern take on materials and techniques forging new aesthetic values.” THE GEORGE GALLERY
54 Broad St, Charleston 843.579.7328 | georgegalleryart.com @georgegalleryart
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Jocelyn Châteauvert Jocelyn Châteauvert calls herself the paper wrangler. “I always think that handmade paper must be Mother Nature's prototyping material,” she says. Châteauvert is a paper artist, and she creates jewelry, lighting, sculpture, and installations from paper that she makes by hand. “I build worlds from the most common and least known material: paper,” she says. “The ritual of papermaking is ancient, scientific, and rhythmic. I merge this science with the unknown by air-drying my pieces. The paper shrinks, twists, and cockles, forming three-dimensional shapes more subtle
than I could design.” The organic nature of Châteauvert’s process lends itself to floral forms. “My paper forms revert to their botanical origins; I make plants from plants. Oversized and immersive or diminutive and whimsical, my pieces dilate the natural world and bring it inside." Châteauvert’s work can be found in the collections of the South Carolina State Museum, Smithsonian American Art Museum, and Boston’s Museum of Fine Arts. In 2016, she won the People’s Choice Award at ArtFields, and she was awarded Best in Show at the 2017 North Charleston Arts Fest.
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Kerry Simmons “There’s so much ugliness in the world,” says Kerry Simmons. “If I can do something that contributes beauty, I think I’ve done my job.” That’s why, for a recent body of work exhibited at Robert Lange Studios, the artist’s subjects included two of the most beautiful things she could think of — flowers and her friends. Inspired by the decorative elements of Gustav Klimt’s paintings, Simmons created her own take on the Austrian painter’s work, placing women against a floral backdrop. For the series, Simmons painted women that she knew, often wearing floral prints. “I think all my models are beautiful
women on the inside, as well as on the outside,” she says. “Of course, they’re attractive women, but there’s an inner beauty that shines through. That’s why I choose people I know, too, because I feel like I have a better chance of capturing that person.” The artist adds, “I’m interested in people who have a look that’s not of a certain time and place and that is relatable, whether you know the person or not.” ROBERT LANGE STUDIOS
2 Queen St, Charleston 843.805.8052 | robertlangestudios.com @robertlangestudios
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Karen Vournakis “I make portraits of flowers rather than people.” That’s according to Charlestonbased artist Karen Vournakis. “Each photograph is a portrait of an individual flower. I want to capture its beauty and uniqueness on film. The image is a portrait of the individual flower from my perspective.” Vournakis works in the medium of hand-tinted photography—her portraits of flowers and other subjects are part photograph, part painting. “I print the image on gelatin silver photographic paper,” she explains. Next, she applies
color pigment to the print in the studio, adding her own emotional interpretation of the scene. Previously having taught photography at Syracuse University, Colgate University, and Dartmouth College, Vournakis moved to Charleston in 1995 and opened the Karen Vournakis Studio/ Gallery, which she ran for eight years. Today, she works out of a studio at Redux Contemporary Art Center. REDUX CONTEMPORARY ART CENTER 1056 King St, Charleston Spring 2020 | 23
John Thompson John Thompson considers himself a landscape artist. Look at his work, however, and you may get the sense that he’s capturing moments in time — portraits of marsh grass and lily pads and flower petals rustling in the wind. “With the fast pace of our contemporary lives, these fleeting moments provide a sense of calm and hope for what might be ahead,” he says. Thompson is a printmaker who uses various printing techniques, including silkscreens on rice paper. Before the artist creates his work, he goes out into nature and studies it directly, bringing impressions of the environment back with him to the studio. “Rather than attempting to document an image, I use the beauty of blossoms and the
tangle of wonderful growth in marshes and ponds to inspire an interpretation of fleeting moments,” he says. “Moments that so often leave us with just a glimpse of glory we cannot reclaim but may recall in our own way.” Having spent many years in the Lowcountry, Thompson now lives in Boston, where he runs his studio and print shop and teaches printmaking at Massachusetts College of Art and Design. He is represented by Atrium Art Gallery, and his work is part of the permanent collection of Husk restaurants. ATRIUM ART GALLERY
61 Queen St, Charleston 843.973.3300 | atriumartgallery.com @atriumartgallery
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Anna Kasabian When Anna Kasabian started working with porcelain in 2010, she didn’t set out to create floral pieces. They flowed from her head and her heart to her hands instinctively. “It is what came naturally to me as I worked each piece of clay,” she says. “My first hand-formed bowls, tiny as they were, one inch in diameter, recalled flowers.” Today, Kasabian still creates pieces that call up the forms and motions of flowers, as well as sea plants and ocean waves – though mostly on a larger scale. Where does that impulse come from? “I live in a place where the ocean and a beautiful landscape woven with gardens and a rocky shore have become part of me,” she says. “And my
love of both the sea and lush gardens now come through my hands and into my clay.” Kasabian often names her pieces after antique roses – Salet, Leda, Arethusa – which she says have characteristics that she feels align spiritually with her work. The artist, who started her career in ceramics by creating whimsical illustrations on pre-formed bisques, has found her ideal medium in porcelain. “I learned its peculiarities by becoming intimate with it and now understand, respect, and cater to its uniqueness.” ELLA WALTON RICHARDSON FINE ART 58 Broad St, Charleston 843.722.3660 | ellarichardson.com @ewrfineart
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Brandon Donahue Brandon Donahue believes that all objects, even the most mundane, have a spirit and a history. If that’s true, then the artist is helping save discarded objects from landfill hell and giving them new life as art through customization and assemblage. Take, for example, basketballs. For Donahue’s series Basketball Blooms, he slices through the leather and rubber and arranges the repurposed balls into wall hangings that resemble flowers. “Each of the basketballs that I use to make the blooms carries a history,” Donahue says. “The number of games they’ve seen, the puddles, the pavement, the hands, and the lives through which
they’ve passed. The sacred geometry of the mandala, a symbolic picture of the universe that is associated with belonging and harmony, inspires both the meaning and the design of the Basketball Blooms." In addition to creating Basketball Blooms and other large-scale installations, Nashville-based Donahue is also a professor at Tennessee State University, his alma mater. Here in Charleston, he is represented by Trager Contemporary. TRAGER GALLERY 577 King St, Charleston 843.882.5464 | tragercontemporary.com @tragercontemporary
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Glory Day Loflin Glory Day Loflin calls herself an interdisciplinary artist, working out ideas in multiple materials. She makes paintings and collages, wood sculptures and ceramics—and she’s a singer/songwriter, too. Her visual art fixates on the ceramic vessel and how that relates back to humanness. “My paintings and sculptures currently draw from an interest in the figurative language of ceramics,” Loflin says. “I think of the lip of the bowl, the foot of the pot, and the neck of the vase and consider the human vessel.” Contained within many of those vessels are flowers (and plants and fruit and other things that grow and parish). “The inclusion of florals in my paintings is in some ways just an echo of a long history of still life paintings and in other ways a note on the life that the human vessel inevitably holds for a time before dissipating,” she explains.
But the flowers have a personal context, too. “I began drawing florals when I was a kid, as my mother was an avid gardener. She had the most beautiful selection of purple irises, red, pink, and white azalea bushes, and a whole yard full of lamb's ear,” Loflin says. “It wasn't until after college when I returned from New York to my mother's garden in South Carolina that I made the connection between florals in my work and my relationship to my mom. In 2017, my mother had a stroke that stole her ability to garden as she once did. Nowadays I think of our namesakes, my mother Sue, the Blackeyed Susan, and I, the Morning Glory, and our life together in the painting's surface.” Loflin currently lives in Greenville, SC. If you make your way to Greenville’s Artisphere in May, for which she won the Mayor’s Choice Award last year, be sure to stop by Art & Light Gallery to view her work. Spring 2020 | 31
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Joe Walters Joe Walters’ sculptures bring the outside in. “My recent work using flora and fauna revolves around integrating the two to create dynamic compositions capturing the totality of a specific natural environment,” says the Charleston-based artist. Walters’ typical sculpture materials include steel rod and sheet, aluminum mesh, polymer clay, modeling compounds, polystyrene foam, glues, sand, and paint. They are lightweight enough to mount on the wall, immersing viewers into a nature-like
experience. View the wildflowers, delicate branches, fallen leaves, and bird nests, and you feel like you could be stepping around them as you walk through the woods. Walters will also be showing a grid of 12 x 12-inch panels at ArtFields this spring. Pictured is an example of the artist's most recent work at the B-Liner, a new restaurant at the Kiawah Island Club. ARTFIELDS
April 24 – May 2, 2020 Lake City, SC
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Dixie Dugan Dixie Dugan was a watercolorist for 30 years. Then, in 1999, the artist was in a car accident that left her confined to a hospital bed for a month. “I started to tear,” Dugan remembers. “I cut National Geographic Magazines into small pieces and glued them on cardboard.” When she finally returned home from the hospital, Dugan’s daughter gifted her with origami papers. She began creating collages with hand-made origami and rice papers, and the artist – now 92 – hasn’t stopped since. Dugan’s first collage was a large magnolia, and she says that flowers are
still one of her favorite subjects. “Flowers work great with these types of paper,” she says. “Flowers work well because the papers are so different and have powerful colors. There are so many different types of origami papers, hundreds of patterns and colors. My studio is full of every color, pattern, and size.” Dugan’s collage-work can be found at Studio 151 Fine Arts. “Each flower that I do is a challenge and with the different paper, no two are alike,” she says. STUDIO 151 FINE ARTS
175 Church St, Charleston 843.579.9725 | studio151finearts.com
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Teresa Roche Teresa Roche’s floral paintings and collages are influenced by more than just a fascination with flowers. It’s more personal than that; each of her pieces has a vivid and vibrant memory attached to it. Take, for example, Flowers for Lynn and Red, which was a part of Roche’s recent solo exhibition at Miller Gallery. “Our sweet neighbor, Lynn, and her dog, Red, always stop by when they see us out in our yard,” she recalls. “Last summer, the [grand]children and I planted a garden. Lynn and Red would come over to visit, chat, and play with the children while we watered the seeds and tended the garden. We so enjoyed the time we spent with them! The second the garden started to bloom, Sadie suggested we
make a bouquet for Lynn and Red and surprise them with it. The girls found a pretty vase, cut the flowers, arranged them together and ran all the way to their house to deliver it to them.” No matter the subject, Roche’s work triggers reminiscence. “In excavating memories among the minutiae of life, I'm seeking to unearth something old, worn, perhaps forgotten. I add layers of paint, sometimes dry, sometimes not, and gradually scrape away.” In addition to being represented by Miller Gallery, Roche is the owner of Art & Light Gallery in Greenville, SC. MILLER GALLERY
149 ½ East Bay St, Charleston 843.764.9281 | millergallerychs.com @millergallerychs Spring 2020 | 37
AWAKE March 12 – April 30 Affordable Art of Charleston 1304 Erckmann Dr, Mt. Pleasant, SC
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A new gallery concept has opened in Mt. Pleasant. Affordable Art of Charleston focuses on affordable, contemporary art by local artists. Their current show, running through April 30, is called Awake, a group show highlighting emerging Charleston artists. “I want to awake art patrons to the many great emerging artists in the Charleston area,” says gallery owner Carol Williams. Awake features four artists that we think you should know.
TAYLOR FAULKNER Taylor Faulkner loves the ocean, movement, and surfing. “So that tends to be a major subject in the pieces I create,” she explains. “I tend to make art about what I'm passionate about.” Her connection to surfing has influenced her art. “The surf scene isn't large in Charleston, but the people that choose to live and surf here are so passionate about what they do.” Falkner usually starts her pieces with muted tones then layers in random pops of color and pattern, creating a sense of fun with a dash of depth. “I love oils and pastels because I love the way I can push the material all over the place. It's super satisfying,” she says. “Art is everything, and it means everything. I love that people create, and come together to share this raw act,” she says. “I make because I have to. Creating something from nothing is the greatest feeling in the world. I love to keep pushing myself to try new materials, and my art has evolved because of that.”
KATE COMEN Everyone can relate to food, which is why it’s the subject matter Kate Comen is primarily inspired to paint. “I use imagery from photographs that I have taken, or family and friends have taken, so the paintings are personal to me but can relate to the viewer because of the universal nature of food,” she says. Comen creates with acrylic and gouache on wood panels. “I usually don’t plan out paintings,” she comments. Instead, she
starts with the basic shapes of the objects and goes from there, with “each previous color helping to inform what color comes next," she describes. "I strive to create a harmony between color, line, and texture so that the painting brings warmth to the space it gets placed in. “ Growing up in Charleston and following the careers of many different artists inspired Comen to start painting. “Charleston also provides a lot of inspiration from the colors and textures found throughout the city,” she says.
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PAGE FEIGLY SMYTHE Paige Feigly Smythe loves the endless details found in nature. “I’m fascinated by the colors, patterns, and textures of each season,” she shares. “My art is a way of processing the world around me. Creating work based on the excitement and fascination I get when looking at nature brings me so much joy and energy—I can’t help but recreate something with my hands.” She’s also inspired by the creativity of local florists. “I love seeing what flowers and plants they use to pull together an arrangement.” 40 | theartmag.com
Through collage, she focuses on the details and layers she finds in nature. “My hope for my floral bouquet artwork is that it will represent the emotions evoked by those who give and receive bouquets,” she explains. “Often this type of gift stems from extreme emotions—heavy ones such as illness, death, heartbreak or positive ones such as gratitude, encouragement, and love.” She didn’t intend to start working with paper. Smythe originally envisioned wooden cutout pieces
and used paper to create the stencils. “I got hooked after arranging different [paper] cutouts to form floral bouquets and haven’t moved back to working with wood since,” she describes. She'll often not sketch anything out and just start cutting with scissors. “I love the freedom this allows and organic floral shapes that emerge from not having something drawn to cut from.”
KRISTY BISHOP
Kristy Bishop weaves unapologetically feminine tapestries. Her color choices are often pinks and reds, “derivative of the flesh,” she explains. You can spot her fabric art by her use of bold weaving patterns with large tassels and fringe, which Bishop compares to that of a Burlesque dancer. “The performer uses tassels as a satire on modesty, covering the nipple yet drawing even more attention to it,” she says.
Different from other mediums, fiber artists aren’t expected to create something that represents something in real life. “The material itself automatically pushed me to be more abstract in general, and I’m not worried about it looking like something or telling a story necessarily,” says Bishop. “It can represent a feeling or, for me, the process is important. The making of it is the most important part, and that’s why I love it. I like making stuff that doesn't have to look like things that exist.” Spring 2020 | 41
DISCOVERED MURALS BROUGHT BACK TO LIFE by Michele Seekings
When I last interviewed painting conservator Catherine Rogers, she and her team of conservators were about to embark on a large-scale project to conserve and restore the murals at the College of Charleston's historic Sottile Theatre. 42 | theartmag.com
After starting the project in February 2019, today Rogers, Craig Crawford, Maho Yoshikawa, and conservation assistant Sharon Infinger are quickly approaching the conclusion of this massive undertaking, anticipating that the theater will reopen just in time for the Spoleto Festival later this spring. A lot goes into conserving a project of this scale—including time, patience, and expertise. Here’s a look.
Mike Ledford/College of Charleston
SOTTILE THEATRE: A BRIEF HISTORY
Originally named the Gloria Theatre, Albert Sottile opened the venue in 1927 as a place for film premieres and vaudeville shows. Large classical murals were painted on the north and south interior walls of the theater. Each side mirrors the other with respect to size and number of murals, with one large canvas mural adhered to the wall and four smaller murals painted
directly on plaster. Not much is known about the artists today, except that they were most likely Italian artists and living in New York. A 1927 article in The News and Courier drew attention to the murals. “One depicts a centaur and nymphs with an attractive landscape backdrop, and the other suggests music and drama. On either side of these canvases are fine ornamental patterns.” Spring 2020 | 43
Genevieve Palmisano/Sottile Theatre
Over time, the Gloria Theatre transitioned into a movie theater and improvements were made to enhance acoustic quality. Heavy panels were applied directly to the murals and hidden behind heavy velvet drapes. After the theater closed in 1975, the murals were forgotten. The space was later acquired by the College of Charleston, reopening in 1990 as the Sottile Theatre. But it wasn’t until 2011, during a round of building improvements, that the forgotten murals were discovered. Even after years of deterioration, it was decided they would be openly displayed. All five murals on the north wall were uncovered. The south wall had to be reconstructed,
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and the four smaller murals were lost in the repair. The large canvas mural was removed and carefully rolled into a protective tube, where it remained for eight years before Rogers and her team started their work. Funding for the restoration work on these murals was thoughtfully donated by the family of Albert Sottile.
THE SOUTH WALL: TAR BLOBS AND COTTON SWABS
The team began their conservation work with very little documentation or images of the original murals. The large canvas mural that was removed from the south wall measured approximately 15 feet by 30 feet and was found in six separate segments. What’s more:
hundreds of black circular blobs covered the canvas, so their next task was to find a solution to remove them. But what were these blobs? “They were circular tar accretions approximately two inches by two inches that covered the entire mural,” Rogers describes. “It’s the tar that was applied directly to the murals to hold the acoustical tiles." It appears that the improvements made to enhance the acoustic quality of the theater was valued more than the artwork at the time. The team experimented with heat, solvents, and mechanical approaches to remove the tar. “All of that was frustrating because it wasn’t quick and could possibly damage the underlying paint layer,” Rogers explains. “The end result is that we had to use solvents and cotton swabs along with gloves, respirators, and proper solvent ventilation.” And so they tackled one tar blob at a time—out of an estimated 600 to 800 of them—with each one taking anywhere from five to 10 minutes to remove. “You couldn’t speed it up, and you had to be patient,” she adds. The aim was to get back to the paint layer and try to retrieve any design that was underneath. “Unfortunately, the tar had stained the paint film,” Rogers explains. “Even though we were successfully able to get back to the original paint, we were still going to need
to do some glazing and reworking with in-painting to blend in with the adjacent paint colors.” Along with creases and tears in the canvas, the mural had also sustained water damage and paint loss. For months, the team spent every day working on the mural, removing tar, cleaning, repairing tears, and varnishing each of the segments.
THE SOUTH WALL: FROM SOTILLE TO STUDIO TO SOTILLE AGAIN In June, scaffolding was erected in the theater for the team to reinstall the mural. The challenge was to reinstall the segments in their exact places. “It had to match up to the images and center with columns that had not been built yet,” describes Rogers. “It also had to be placed properly with the eight-inch frame that would surround the mural, which had also not been built yet.” The four smaller murals on this wall had to be totally recreated. Compared to the Italian classical scenes of the large canvas murals, these were a geometric design with Greek key borders. Yoshikawa created a master transparent stencil of the most intact small mural on the north wall to accomplish the task.
THE NORTH WALL: SALT CRYSTALS AND SCALPELS
“We realized that it was actually a blessing to have the rolled-up mural to work on in the studio first,” says Rogers. In the studio, they had materials and equipment to figure out solutions, and they knew exactly how to proceed
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Sharon Infinger, Craig Crawford, Maho Yoshikana, and Catherine Rogers Genevieve Palmisano/Sottile Theatre
when they arrived on site in June. “It saved us some time and energy on how to tackle the remaining murals." But they quickly discovered new issues to address. “We found nails, staples, flaking paint, and salt crystals from water penetration," continues Rogers. “First, we vacuumed the salt crystals off the surface of the paintings, then we used a heat-set adhesive to consolidate the flaking paint.” Another challenge was revealed. In some areas, the canvas was no longer glued to the plaster substrate. “We had to figure out how to reattach it to the wall,” she says.
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The canvas also bulged out several inches in certain areas because there was so much broken plaster debris behind it. “We made the decision to take a scalpel and open up the canvas along image designs or seams,” explains Rogers. “We had to get behind the canvas to correct the problems.” This involved removing the rubble, consolidating the plaster wall where needed, filling in plaster where it had been lost, and then smoothing the wall.
THE NORTH WALL: ‘NO SPEED INVOLVED’
And then there was still the task of removing hundreds more of those pesky tar accretions, which required even more finesse. “In the controlled studio environment, the canvas from the south
wall was flat and the solvent could be easily contained in a particular area,” Rogers explains. “For the north wall, how do you keep the solvent from running down the mural, potentially causing further damage to the mural?” By doing it slowly. “It was a laborious task with no speed involved, and it took muscle,” answers Rogers. “The tar is like a piece of hard candy that you’re trying to make disappear in your mouth. It’s a slow process.”
THE MURAL TODAY: NEAR COMPLETION
“Everything that conservators do should be reversible,” Rogers emphasizes. “Even though you think we are gluing this canvas to the wall and we want it to stay there forever, it actually may need to come off the wall for some reason. Down the road, if there’s a better material or if the artwork is going to need cleaning a 100 years from now, you
want the next group of conservators to remove it easily. It’s safer for the artwork.” “Catherine and her team have brought the murals back to life,” says Anja Kelley, director of operations at the Sottile Theatre. She appreciates the process it takes to conserve and is excited they have the opportunity to restore the murals. “It’s interesting how every generation and what they value is different,” Kelley observes. “Back in time, they covered the murals to enhance sound quality. What will future generations think is more important? It’s interesting how things come back around, especially with art or decorative art.”
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This year’s 1858 Prize winner Donté K. Hayes with his latest work Sanctuary, on view at the Gibbes Museum of Art. | MCG Photography
The 1858 Prize for Contemporary Southern Art Each year an artist whose work contributes to a new understanding of art in the South is awarded The 1858 Prize for Contemporary Southern Art title and a cash prize of $10,000. The Society 1858 auxiliary group at the Gibbes Museum of Art presents the prize to “recognize an artist whose work demonstrates the highest level of artistic achievement in any media.” Artists from more than 11 states compete, and this year the winner, Donté K. Hayes, was celebrated this past February during the 48 | theartmag.com
Amy P. Coy Forum and 1858 Winter Party at the Gibbes. Hayes is a Georgia-based ceramicist who explores themes in Afrofuturism, a projected vision of an imagined future that critiques the historical and cultural events of the African Diaspora and the distinct black experience of the Middle Passage. His work connects disparate concepts for the purpose of creating new
understandings and connections with history and social-political issues. Hayes visually connects a number of abstract ideas, conceptually creating something entirely new. And what’s created provides a space, a place, and a home for these ideas. “I compare the construction and deconstruction of materials to the remix in rap music and how human beings adapt to different environments and reinvent new identities,” he explains. “His works demonstrate a powerful vision,” says Angela Mack, executive director of the Gibbes Museum of Art. “He is at the forefront of Southern contemporary art.” While in Charleston, Hayes participated in the Amy P. Coy Forum. The forum features a panel discussion of artists and art experts, reflecting Society 1858’s mission to educate and excite up-and-coming arts patrons about the diverse range of artwork being created in the contemporary South. This year’s panel discussed the influence of Hayes’ work, how art creates a place and space for a community, and art’s role in defining cultural history.
Panelists DONTÉ K. HAYES Hayes is the 2019 winner of the 1858 Prize for Contemporary Southern Art. He graduated summa cum laude from Kennesaw State University at Kennesaw, GA, with a BFA in Ceramics and Printmaking with an Art History minor. Currently, Hayes is a third-year MFA candidate at the University of Iowa Dimensional Studies in Ceramics.
ALEX PAIK Paik is a Brooklyn-based artist whose work explores perception, interdependence, and improvisation within structure through site-responsive geometric modular wall installations. He is the founder and director of Tiger Strikes Asteroid and gallery director at Trestle Gallery. From 2015-18, he was curator of Satellite Art Show, an alternative art fair in Miami.
ANNE COLLINS SMITH Smith is the Curator of Collections at the Spelman College Museum of Fine Art in Atlanta, GA, where she provides leadership in the area of collections management and strategically plans for the collection’s sustainability, growth, and impact. In 2017 she joined the board of the Association of Art Museum Curators and is active with the Alliance of HBCU Museum and Galleries.
SARA ARNOLD Arnold is Director of Curatorial Affairs at the Gibbes Museum of Art where she oversees special exhibitions and is responsible for the study, care, and interpretation of the museum’s permanent art collection. She has curated or co-curated nearly 30 exhibitions, has contributed articles to Journal of the Print World, American Art Review, and Antiques and Fine Art magazines, and is co-editor of The Life and Art of Alfred Hutty: Woodstock to Charleston.
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JAY BENSON (panel moderator) I’d like to kick off the discussion with a question for the curators on our panel. There has been a visible renaissance in the contemporary art world with the inclusion of ceramic works in more and more exhibitions. Whether slip-casting, hand-throwing, coiling, or pinching clay, these ceramicists all demonstrate that a 2,000-year-old medium can be progressive, challenging, and in some cases avant-garde. Have ceramics become more visible in your curatorial practice? ALEX PAIK Yes, I think that hybridforms are getting looked at much more, primarily because I think the cis white male canon is kind of being attacked from all angles. So anything that's talking about things that are between media, or between cultures, or between certain things has been more exciting over the years.
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ANNE COLLINS SMITH Definitely, yes. In 2008, the museum received a promised gift of African ceramics because traditionally women were creators of ceramics. So, I know two male ceramicists—that’s you [Donté K. Hayes] and Theaster Gates, whose works were represented at Spelman. So, just really understanding what does ceramics [as art] mean. How they provide home and food, and just the whole idea of welcoming women's place in that. Because women weren't making those as ritualistic objects, but then again the most sacred ritual is around the hearth and the home. So, yes. SARA ARNOLD Well, a lot of ceramics are showing up. A lot of traditional handcrafts in general are making appearances—textiles are another example. The boundaries are really being blurred all together today. I think even institutions are
allowing those boundaries to be blurred and are more accepting of non-traditional media. It’s also because all these diverse voices are being better heard over time. I think what’s exciting today is what the artists are saying, but also the materials that they’re using. EMILY BROOME (panel moderator) As we saw, Donté is greatly inspired by history, hip hop, and science fiction in his exploration of themes of Afrofuturism. Inspiration comes in many forms. These pop cultural references reinterpret history to critic the present and give hope to the future. Art can provide hope but also capture struggle. This is a question for everyone, what can contemporary art do for a community and does it have to do anything? DONTÉ K. HAYES I feel that as an artist, my goal is just to be real, you know. Just be me, be real, be authentic, don’t be fake,
MCG Photography
don't be doing things just so I can look like I'm helping the community. I help the community because I want to help the community— because I’m in the community—not because I'm trying to be like, “Oh, I’m the artist, and we’re going to make work,” and then make my work for the community. No, the community should tell me what work they want because I live in that community, so I’ll know. I feel the artist’s role is to be always authentic, and everything else will come in that way. ANNE COLLINS SMITH I love how you [Donté K. Hayes] provide hospitality, which I see as really kind of missing in this world, and how hospitality is weeded out to whatever group you end with. But hospitality is one of those societal values that's quickly eroding. So thank you for bringing that back to hip hop.
DONTÉ K. HAYES Speaking on that, because I'm going to plug my thesis show [Welcome To Afro City], and when you brought up about the women who actually create for function, for my thesis I was thinking about the Ghanaians, because they're the ones who really make it work. I was going to represent that by having a big table that looks like it would be a [King] Charles II kind of table. And there's going to be food—fried chicken, collard greens—at the table. There will be chairs, and everyone is welcome to eat. And that is actually my sculpture, with a giant pineapple that’s all black with pink highlights and gold luster. So I wanted to represent, that's a way for me to bring the community in, in that way. So all are welcome, not just talking about people of color, because the best way to help somebody is through some good food.
ALEX PAIK I feel art can be a really powerful tool. Like, I don't think it's going to change anyone's mind—I have doubts that people can really change, but that’s another subject—but I feel art is really amazing because it can kind of collapsed time. So you can think about the trauma of the Middle Passage, and simultaneously be holding this idea of home, and also science fiction. It can hold all these things in one place, and then it takes up that space and says, “I'm here.” So in that sense, I feel it’s important to have art, and it’s important to have artists that are really burrowing deep into the personal histories, our history, and cultural histories. And to have these objects that become sites for contemplation, if you allow it and if you're open to. Some people are never open to it. That’s a shame, but you can't force them to do that. But you can have a really beautiful, meaningful
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experience just standing in front of this black piece of rock [referring to Hayes' work]. You know what I mean? And you can have all of these associations that you might not connect otherwise. JAY BENSON Nice point. Continuing on your comment, Anne, and going back to Donté, your work with the pineapple, the symbol that represents welcoming and hospitality while also pushing larger issues to food, empire, and constitutes a feeling of being welcomed. This question is for all of you: How frequently do you see themes of displacement in artists’ work?
ANNE COLLINS SMITH I see both displacement and occupation, and they’re kind of one and the same. But I also see artists intervening, like Donté does. Like how do you find home? And how do you find home in a world that says no? How do you often assert yourself? Alright, full disclosure, I've always wanted to come to Charleston because I'm from New Orleans, and what's really happening to our coasts environmentally, with tourism [contributing]. So [coming to] this place [and adding to that problem] is something I battle over.
SARA ARNOLD I think we’re seeing more themes along displacement, and that voice line is more present and more readily accepted. I think displacement can be many different stories. It could be environmental displacement, it could be place displacement, so it flows in a lot of different storylines.
As a curator, [I see displacement] especially when certain art becomes very, very popular and works are going to auction. And, [when] somebody's work sold for 75 million dollars, and that artist may have only seen 100,000 for that [piece]. Somehow their practice is displaced. So every day, and in every kind of way, I see artists addressing that.
And, of course, artists are these great communicators. They often are showing this thread through time, like Donte’s work certainly represents. And being these great communicators who are creating great works, they’re representatives of the story of our time. Like Alex was saying, when you’re open to it, and you have that experience and introduce yourself to these different voices, it can be a great changing experience.
ALEX PAIK I see a lot of work being made about displacement because more artists are from displaced cultures that have traditionally been misplaced. Frankly, I think we're far from where we need to be, but it's hopeful to see more. I think the reason why you're seeing a lot of that is because hopefully, together as a country, we’re trying to think about those issues and trying to think about those that
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were displaced or forced from their homes. Donte’s work talks about that in a very poetic and not heavyhanded way. DONTÉ K. HAYES It's also important to use it as a way of healing because I needed to be healed. And what's the best way of healing someone other than to feel comfort. So I make the work specifically to the point that it makes you want to touch it because sometimes you need to feel that human touch. We’re so busy with our phones. That’s not human touch. But having that real human touch—that shows you’re really loved and that you’re really welcome in a place. JAY BENSON I know we have a question from both Anne and Alex. So, Anne, I'm going to let you ask your question to Donté. ANNE COLLINS SMITH Who would you consider your artistic spiritual cohorts? DONTÉ K. HAYES That’s a great question because everyone is always asking me, “Why do you want to go to Iowa?” A lot of my friends are thinking Iowa is Idaho, or didn’t know where it was, and I told them the reason why I want to go to Iowa is because of Elizabeth Catlett. I love Elizabeth Catlett, that’s my favorite artist of all time. She was a printmaker and a sculpture. In 1940, she went to the University
of Iowa and got the first MFA ever in America. Not just black woman, not just woman—just human being… first-ever…in 1940. Did y’all know that? No, you did not know that! And the crazy thing is, she wasn’t even allowed to be on campus to do her work. She had to live like almost 50 miles away. And it's kind of ironic that in 2016, well really 2017, they built the Elizabeth Catlett Hall there. And it’s kind of ironic that all these great people can live in the hall that she could never even be in. That shows you how much power that is. I go to the museum all the time and ask the curators if I can look at some of the Catlett prints. And I’m there a lot, so they all know me because I’m always there just looking through them. Because to me that's the more powerful art. So yes that’s who I want to be with. If I get one of my sculptures next to a print of Elizabeth Catlett then I’ve made it. ALEX PAIK I wanted to ask you about Afrofuturism, but I feel like we’ve been talking about home and space, and taking up space, and thinking about the Middle Passage where culture was taken from these people. And from that, black America emerged. All these slaves from different parts of Africa didn’t really know each other before. They were just forced, because of
this trauma, to create space for themselves and create a place for themselves in the world. I guess that’s still considered Afrofuturism, since Afrofuturism is a way for people to imagine what could have been, or might have been, or should have been, perhaps. So my question is, what is your relationship with the idea of space? You said it’s not about being political; it’s about being authentic. But just being a black male artist in a predominantly white space, that creating space can be a political act in itself. So what is your relationship with your work? To creating space? To taking space? To reclaiming space? ...you know, all the space. DONTÉ K. HAYES So some people say, “Oh you must really love working in black stoneware.” And, well yes, I like using black stoneware, but I’m using it for content, not because I like working in black stoneware. Sometimes I’m working in porcelain because it reminds me of—Ok, here's something that’s kind of interesting. When we were talking about the Middle Passage and more space; when those enslaved Africans were thrown overboard, where they live—rest in peace—was in the water where coral lives. What happens to coral when it dies? It turns white. Did you all know that? So that’s the reason why I’m using porcelain because that’s another space. So some of the work even looks like
coral. So some people say, “I thought we were talking about pineapples. Why does it look like coral?” Because I’m saying that space is what happened to them. They lost their color. So in the work, I’m always using the work as an opportunity to not just be a beacon, but it’s also the place for the healing for that beacon. So if you're the only person of color, or you're the only person that's feeling hurt in that space, you can feel that. You can know that you’re not alone. That’s how you take over that space. All white space with one little black thing in there, that one black thing is more powerful than all the white space there. ALEX PAIK I think about the work of Torkwase [Dyson]. In her work, a lot of it is dealing with how black bodies would have to be conformed to a space or confined in a space. Her paintings and her installations force you to navigate the world in a different way. I wonder, do you feel like you have an affinity for her work? Or do you think about her work a lot? DONTÉ K. HAYES That was pretty powerful too. I feel like when I’m making the pieces, I kind of see them as bodies. And I even bring that up in the statement that Jay read, that it’s alluded to a black life. Like when you don’t feel good about yourself, you move Spring 2020 | 53
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it in your body. And I want to show that. Or if you’re feeling welcomed, you feel a little puffed up. Or, like, if you’re slouching, you can be slouching because no one is going to think nothing of it, you know? So I’m thinking about that too in the space. But I think it’s really important that when I install my work that it’s like—You know how some people just want everything in a gallery? I want these pieces to stand on their own. So for my thesis show, it’s only going to be like five works. EMILY BROOME Thank you so much. I want to open for audience questions if anyone has anything they’d like to ask any of the panelists or Donté. AUDIENCE QUESTION Does your sense of humor influence your art? DONTÉ K. HAYES Yeah, because that's who I am. I always want my work to feel like if I wasn't there you would know that was me. Like when you go upstairs [in the Gibbes Museum] to see the work you can say, “I can definitely see how he made that because it looks just like him.” AUDIENCE QUESTION Your work, I experience it as very narrative. Not just historical, specifically, but also extremely narrative. What does story mean to you as you’re creating?
DONTÉ K. HAYES Ok, that’s a great question. I’ll say something more real and personal. I normally wouldn’t lead you there, but I’m doing it because you asked the question. So thank you for asking. A lot of the work, if you notice, always comes to hair, and I brought hair up. Growing up, my mom, she has some mental issues that she takes her hair out. I would see it all through the house, and that would let me know that she was there. That was welcoming to me, seeing hair. Other people would think, “Oh, that’s nasty.” But for me, that was beautiful, because I knew that my mom was here, and she was alive, and she was doing well. Even though she was taking her hair out, at least I knew that her body, and her way of trying to cope with life, she was in the home. So that's the reason why I wasn't scared. I think hair is a welcoming thing. I started getting a CSI idea of, like, that’s her DNA. So no matter where we are, we can take a piece of that person. AUDIENCE QUESTION You answered the question why you went to Iowa for your MFA, but why did you feel the need to continue your formal education when you do so much of your own discovery?
to. I know that’s crazy to tell them they don’t have to go to school, but they relate to that and respect that. I’ll take them to my studio and say, “This is what an artist should be doing.” It’s more than just make a project. I don’t make projects. I make work. So, the question about why did I need to get an MFA. I didn’t see it as I need to get an MFA; I saw it more as I need to get the knowledge. I have a bigger base in painting and printmaking and graphic design than I did in ceramics. I’ve only really been working in ceramics since 2015, so I felt I needed that extra time to just make work. And also you got to pay for a kiln. They’re expensive. And you got to pay for an extruder. You have to pay for slab rollers. You have to find a way to get the clay, you know? Where are you going to store all of this stuff? So, an institution is actually helping me at this moment so that I could find out what that $10,000 feels like [winning the 1858 Prize]. Then I won’t have to worry about that institution. Great question, but yes, I agree, you do not have to go to school to do art.
DONTÉ K. HAYES Good question. I even tell my students, because I teach Ceramics I, you don’t have
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SCULPTURE AND FILM FESTS AND OPERAS… NAVIGATE THIS YEAR’S CROP OF ARTS FESTIVALS IN THE CAROLINAS AND GEORGIA WITH THE ART MAG AS YOUR CO-PILOT Here in the Southeast, spring brings bountiful azaleas and barbecues and a burning urge to shut down the laptop and get thee to a rooftop bar. All that, and arts festivals. From Arts Fest to ArtFields to Artisphere, here’s a survey of this year’s festivals. Spring 2020 | 57
ARTFIELDS April 24 – May 2 Lake City, SC artfieldssc.org ArtFields has quickly gained recognition as one of the Southeast’s premier visual arts competitions. During the nine-day festival, the small South Carolina town of Lake City is infused with music, tours, and, of course, visual art. More than 400 works of art are displayed in renovated warehouses, local boutiques and
restaurants, and art galleries throughout town. With over $140,000 in prizes awarded to the winners, ArtFields can be life-changing to Southern artists. What’s more: The festival has been transformative to Lake City, helping reignite economic growth in the onceflourishing farm town. This year, 21 artists from the Charleston area have been selected to present their work, making Charleston one of the most highly represented cities in the state. In 2018, two of the top awards when to Charleston artists; let’s see what we can bring home this year. Spring 2020 | 59
Gavin Shelton
NORTH CHARLESTON ARTS FEST April 29 – May 3 North Charleston, SC northcharlestonartsfest.com
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This year folks can expect more of what the North Charleston Arts Fest does so well—free performances in venues throughout the city, public art installations by College of Charleston School of the Arts Sculpture students, and the Arty Block Party celebration on East Montague Ave in Park Circle. One big difference this year is the opening of the festival. The artists reception on April 29 is getting ramped up and turning into an opening celebration for the festival as a whole. Think free food and drinks, live music with Ron Wiltrout Jazz Quartet, live
painting, and hands-on activities to help honor poster design winner Christine Bush Roman, celebrate the artists participating in the exhibitions, and kick off the festival with a bang. NCAF always features ample exhibition opportunities for artists and even more opportunities for us to see great art. Christine Bush Roman, Katherine Dunlap, and artist-in-residence Katherine Hester will have solo exhibits at North Charleston City Hall. Be sure to also check out the Judged Fine Art and Photography Exhibitions at the Convention Center, the South Carolina Palmetto Hand Juried Fine Craft Exhibition, the National Outdoor Sculpture Exhibition installed at North Charleston Riverfront Park, and the
DAN ESTABROOK: WUNDERKAMMER
African American Fiber Art Exhibition with this year’s theme of Sankofa. The World Arts Expo at Riverfront Park was presented for the first time last year, and the festival is bringing it back— this time bigger and better. A special screening of the documentary The Price of Everything is in the works with some sort of artist-led discussion panel to follow. And look out for a “brewgrass” series, with bluegrass and Americana concerts planned at four breweries in North Charleston—Ship’s Wheel Cidery, Freehouse Brewery, Holy City Brewing, and Commonhouse Aleworks.
LARSON SHINDELMAN: GEOLOCATION
MAY 15 - JULY 18 Find out more at
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ARTISPHERE May 8 – 10 Greenville, SC artisphere.org Concerts, ballets, visual art demonstrations, juried art exhibitions, interactive experiences, kid-friendly arts activities, and the best of Greenville’s food, wine, and craft beer scene: Artisphere packs it all into a three-day festival throughout the West End of downtown. This year, 999 artists applied for a spot on Artist Row, of which only 135 artists 62 | theartmag.com
were accepted to show their work. Last year it was reported that exhibiting artists averaged sales of $9,929, making it a fine time to add to your collection. Catch Chicago-based street artist Nate Baranoski and street muralist David Zinn transform pavement around the festival, or try your hand at creating a piece of temporary public art in the large-scale sculptural installation. Artisphere’s founding mission to create a nationally recognized fine arts festival has grown the event into a cultural centerpiece for the Southeast region. If you’ve been meaning to pay Greenville a visit, this is the time.
PICCOLO SPOLETO OUTDOOR ART EXHIBITION May 22 – June 7 Charleston, SC piccolospoleto.com It’s that time of year again when Marion Square turns from a park in to one of the largest art galleries in the city. More than 70 artists will descend on Marion Square for the annual Piccolo Spoleto Outdoor Art Exhibition. This juried art show is a marathon of 17 days, so how should you navigate the park this year? We’ve highlighted some artists to get you prepared to see some can’tmiss artwork. 64 | theartmag.com
LOGISTICS The PSOAE is held from May 22 – June 7 in the heart of downtown in Marion Square, with artists’ tents running predominantly along the Calhoun St and Meeting St sides of the park.
PARKING If a coveted on-street parking spot is not available, try Marion Square Garage right across the street at 399 King St. The Visitor’s Center Garage at 63 Meeting St and George St Parking Garage at 34 St. Philip St are also close by.
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Ivo Kerssemakers captures natural scenes using long-exposure photography to create dreamy, often surreal, moments. Born in the Netherlands and raised in Amsterdam, he moved to the United States in 1997, where he continued to work as a software developer. Ultimately he settled in Murrells Inlet, SC. In 2015, he began pursuing photography professionally, with an emphasis on clean, surrealistic, and minimalist type imagery. “I create this effect by using a long exposure technique, where I use neutral density filters up to 16 stops to achieve exposure times of over four minutes in bright daylight,” he explains.
Kerssemakers pays careful attention to the way landscapes change in different lighting and under different weather conditions, revisiting locations throughout the year to see how they change. He prioritizes using sustainable materials for printing and framing, and this year he is focusing on showing larger pieces. “I’ve switched from full-frame to medium format to have the ability to create even larger prints,” he says. ivokerssemakers.com @ivokee represented by Lowcountr y Artists Galler y 148 East Bay St, Charleston
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PICCOLO SPOLETO OUTDOOR ART EXHIBITION MARION SQUARE
JOYCE HARVEY TENT
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“I once had an instructor tell me to paint what I love most, and the answer was easy—water,” tells Joyce Harvey. A lifelong sailor, Harvey started sailing and racing with her dad at nine years old. She even met her husband through sailing at the Charleston Yacht Club. Her art today reflects her lifelong love of being on the water. And the inspiration for many of her paintings comes from boating the Lowcountry marshes or sailing along the East Coast to the Abaco Islands, Bahamas. In summer she sails from Charleston to New England. “I've been hanging in a Martha’s Vineyard gallery for four years now, and each summer we deliver my paintings by sailboat—which can be quite the adventure.” She specializes in expressive small oil paintings using both palette knife and brush. “I have three dramatically different styles of painting, Impressionistic, impasto, and vivid-colored palette knife oils,” she explains. “I go back and forth between styles because it’s impossible for me to stick to one method. I think working in a variety of styles and techniques actually keeps them all fresh and new.”
Her University of Colorado education and career in broadcast journalism working for CNN, The Weather Channel, and other print and television outlets led her to form her own media-marketing company, JMH Media Group. “I’ve always loved the challenge of visually telling stories, whether it’s through art, video, photography, or writing. I’m now lucky enough to be able to focus primarily on my art career while doing just a handful of media projects each year.” “I love how being an artist heightens your senses in every way, and that is a spectacular way to move through life,” shares Harvey. “You suddenly notice everything—the nuances, the tiniest details, and the extraordinary beauty that surrounds us every day. It’s magical.” And the best part of being an artist: “The ability to connect with perfect strangers through art. It is very, very special and profoundly rewarding.” artistforsail.com @joycehar vey represented by Sandpiper Galler y 2201 Middle St, Sullivans Island Lowcountr y Artists Galler y 148 East Bay St, Charleston
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PICCOLO SPOLETO OUTDOOR ART EXHIBITION MARION SQUARE
DIANNE MUNKITTRICK TENT
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Dianne Munkittrick has devoted herself to the outdoors. From her work on vegetation studies while earning her degree in wildlife management to her career with the US Forest Services, Munkittrick has done everything from radio-tracking deer and elk to cooking and eating rattlesnake. Her lifetime spent in the outdoors has given Munkittrick the ability to create vivid and lifelike wildlife and landscape scenes. Her work has shown in the Birds In Art exhibit at the Leigh Yawkey Woodson Art Museum in Wausau, WI, and the Artists for Conservation exhibit in Vancouver, BC. Some of her work is currently on tour with the Silent Skies Mural Project, a mural depicting 678 endangered bird species, and she just finished showing in the Artists for Conservation exhibit at the Sonora Desert Museum in Arizona. Her work is featured in numerous Artists for Conservation coffee table books and
NBC has even licensed her work to use on sets. Munkittrick expresses her experience with nature through her artwork. “All my pieces are an echo of an actual encounter with nature,” she explains. “I try to convey my feeling of the moment to the viewer. I want you to feel the power of the osprey as he makes his dive, revel in the glory of the egret as he displays his courtship finery, or lose yourself in the depths of the fox’s eyes.” “I strive to paint beyond the ordinary interpretation of nature,” she says. "I try to instill the awe and wonder that nature inspires into each piece. I aim to capture that elusive moment that transforms an experience with nature from mundane to magical.” diannemunkittrick.com @dianne_munkittrick_fine_art
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SOUTH CAROLINA ART MARKET AT HISTORIC HONEY HORN April 25 – 26, 2020 Hilton Head, SC coastaldiscovery.org
EDISTO DAY BAZAAR ARTS AND CRAFTS FESTIVAL May 1, 2020 Edisto, SC
LOWCOUNTRY SHRIMP FESTIVAL May 2, 2020 McClellanville, SC
lowcountryshrimpfestival.com
BLUE CRAB FESTIVAL May 16 – 17, 2020 Little River, SC
Native American heritage displays, black inventors museum, educational forums, teen pageant, arts and crafts, vendors, food court and much more.
SPOLETO FESTIVAL USA May 22 – June 7, 2020 Charleston, SC spoletousa.org
This 17-day festival engulfs the city of Charleston with opera, dance, theatre, chamber music, and more. Spoleto is the American counterpart to Festival of Two Worlds in Spoleto, Italy. Charleston’s historic churches, theatres, and public spaces are filled with some of the finest productions from international companies of the highest caliber.
PICCOLO SPOLETO FESTIVAL
bluecrabfestival.org
May 22 – June 7, 2020 Charleston, SC
ORIGINAL GULLAH FESTIVAL OF SOUTH CAROLINA
piccolospoleto.com
May 22 – 24, 2020 Beaufort, SC
originalgullahfestival.org
Enjoy different style of music such as jazz, gospel, rhythm and blues, Caribbean and reggae music. In addition, there will be African drumming and dancing, bounce houses, face painting, storytelling, 70 | theartmag.com
Piccolo Spoleto is the sister festival to the concurrent Spoleto Festival USA. Piccolo has a strong visual arts presence, and offers 500+ free or low priced events that welcome both the local community and visitors into the peninsula Charleston boroughs and the neighboring towns and islands.
ORIGINAL GULLAH FESTIVAL
May 22 – 24, 2020 Beaufort, SC
CARIFEST
June 18 – 21, 2020 Charleston, SC charlestoncarifest.com
June is Caribbean American Heritage Month and Carifest celebrates the deep lineage from the Caribbean Islands to the Lowcountry, heritage that dates back to the 17th century. Don’t miss their costumed parade through downtown!
BEAUFORT WATER FESTIVAL
July 17 – 26, 2020 Beaufort, SC bftwaterfestival.com
SWEETGRASS FESTIVAL July 2020 Mt. Pleasant, SC
Celebrate Charleston’s Gullah Geechee heritage with dance, craft, music, skits, and traditional Geechee cuisine.
NORTH CAROLINA CAROLINA BEACH STREET ARTS FESTIVAL May 2, 2020 Carolina Beach, NC cbstreetartsfestival.org
ARTRAGEOUS KIDS ART FESTIVAL May 9, 2020 Nags Head, NC darearts.org
LEAF FESTIVAL
May 14 – 17, 2020 Black Mountain, NC theleaf.org
Representatives from more than 30 countries participate in this festival by sharing their culture through music and dance, handcrafted arts, poetry, culinary arts, and healing techniques to celebrate global gratitude.
BIMBE CULTURAL ARTS FESTIVAL May 16, 2020 Durham, NC
dprplaymore.org
SALUDA ARTS FESTIVAL May 16, 2020 Saluda, NC
ARTSPLOSURE: RALEIGH ARTS FESTIVAL
ART BY THE TRACKS
artsplosure.org
ART BY THE SEA FESTIVAL
May 16 – 17, 2020 Raleigh, NC
Raleigh’s local art scene is brought to the city center with performances, an art market, juried art exhibitions, rhythm performers and drummers, and street pianos. A highlight of this event is ArtBeat, where the public participatew in the creation of an instillation using LED lights, bio reactive technology, and Gamelan instruments.
CASHIERS ROTARY ARTS AND CRAFTS FAIR May 23 – 24, 2020 Cashiers, NC cashiersrotary.org
BLUE RIDGE FIBER FEST
June 6, 2020 Black Mountain, NC
June 13, 2020 Swansboro, NC
AMERICAN DANCE FESTIVAL
June 18 – July 25, 2020 Durham, NC americandancefestival.org
Each summer Durham becomes the “beating heart of the dance world” as dance companies from around the world gather to premiere their work. This festival is a major influence in the modern dance world, with over 26,000 people seeing performances by more than 20 companies each season.
June 5 – 6, 2020 Sparta, NC
blueridgefiberfest.com
TASTE OF CHARLOTTE June 5 – 7, 2020 Charlotte, NC
tasteofcharlotte.com
Get your taste buds ready. Featuring more than 30 local restaurants, guests are able to sample appetizers, entrees, and desserts while being entertained by street performers and music.
saluda.com
Spring 2020 | 71
GEORGIA SPRING FESTIVAL ON PONCE April 4 – 5, 2020 Atlanta, GA festivalonponce.com
ACWORTH ART FEST April 4 – 5,2020 Acworth, GA acworth.com
MULBERRY STREET ARTS & CRAFTS FESTIVAL April 4 – 5, 2020 Macon, GA
middlegeorgiaart.org
STATESBORO ARTSFEST
SHAKY KNEES
bullochrec.com
shakykneesfestival.com
April 18, 2020 Statesboro, GA
INMAN PARK SPRING FESTIVAL April 24 – 26, 2020 Atlanta, GA inmanparkfestival.org
AUGUSTA SPRING HANDMADE FAIR May 1, 2020 Augusta, GA
augustahandmadefair.com
May 1 – 3, 2020 Atlanta, GA This is three days of stellar music lineups. If money and time are no object, go for the three-day VIP pass and tie your shoes tight… there’s dancing to be done.
MAY-RETTA DAZE ARTS AND CRAFTS FESTIVAL May 2 – 3, 2020 Marietta, GA marietta.com
Patricia Reno Huff Gallery & Art Center Seabrook Island | Kiawah Island patriciarhuff.com
ARTISPHERE.ORG Original Artwork “Night Swimming” by Phill Singer
ROSWELL SPRING ARTS AND CRAFTS FESTIVAL
CHASTAIN PARK ARTS FESTIVAL
roswellartfestival.com
chastainparkartsfestival.com
CHASTAIN PARK SPRING ARTS FESTIVAL
ATLANTA JAZZ FESTIVAL
May 2 – 3, 2020 Roswell, GA
May 9 – 10, 2020 Atlanta, GA
chastainparkartsfestival.com
May 9 – 10, 2020 Atlanta, GA
May 23 – 24, 2020 Atlanta, GA atlantafestivals.com
DUNWOODY ART FESTIVAL
ATLANTA FOOD AND WINE FESTIVAL
splashfestivals.com
atlfoodandwinefestival.com
May 9 – 10, 2020 Atlanta, GA
tasting tents, dinners, and more. Buy a tent pass, a day pass, or if you’re feeling really indulgent, splurge for the Connoisseur three-day pass.
PEACHTREE CORNERS FESTIVAL
June 12 – 14, 2020 Peachtree Corners, GA peachtreecornersfestival.com
May 28 – 31, 2020 Atlanta, GA
This festival is where every culinary enthusiast’s dream comes true with classes, Spring 2020 | 73
ART SHOWS
SUSAN PERKINS VISUAL VIGIL | MARCH 21 - MAY 3
Visual Vigil is an active conversation on the effects of mass shootings. Susan Perkins created contemplative pieces for this exhibition that represent the lives lost and communities affected by mass violence from 1903 through the present day. Perkins began creating Visual Vigil after the mass shooting at Mother Emanuel. As part of her meditation, Perkins engages in mark-making with Sumi ink on Kozo paper, which she considers her personal calligraphy. The meditation marks are torn, collaged, and transformed to symbolize the on-going shifting and reshaping of life. Lokta paper weavings are created in a grid pattern, then painted on Kozo paper making a grid impression. She creates the grid to represent the collective energy field that we all live within, believing we are interlinked—if one is affected, we are all affected. She further believes our greatest strength comes from our connectivity to one another. Perkins hopes the art can serve as a backdrop for conversations around the societal and psychological effects of mass violence. “I found a cathartic outlet to express my feelings, compassion, and tried to process the senseless violence,” she says. CITY GALLERY AT JOE RILEY WATERFRONT PARK 34 Prioleau St, Charleston 843.958.6484 | citygaller yatwaterfrontpark.com
74 | theartmag.com
Fred Wilson, Black is Beautiful, 2017, Iznik tiles, 9’2” x 19’2” x3/8”, AP 1 of 1, Edition of 3 + 1 AP, No. 67823.AP1, courtesy of Pace Gallery
FRED WILSON AFRO KISMET | MAY 15 – OCT 4
Presented in partnership with Spoleto Festival USA, Afro Kismet features internationally acclaimed artist Fred Wilson’s most recent body of work, originally produced for the 15th Istanbul Biennial in the fall of 2017 and recently exhibited at Pace in London in the spring of 2018. A 1999 MacArthur Foundation “Genius” award winner, Wilson challenges assumptions of history, culture, race, and conventions of display. In Afro Kismet, Wilson investigates the long-ignored presence of communities of African descent in Turkey. He reframes objects and cultural symbols to alter traditional interpretations of social and historical narratives. For example, an Iznik tile wall he created with large Arabic calligraphy translates to “Black is
Beautiful.” A globe sculpture titled Trade Winds refers not to its original meaning related to weather patterns but to the tragic global trade in human beings. The juxtaposition of his work with artifacts from the 19th century not only questions notions of universal knowledge and truth, but also sheds light on histories not thoroughly examined. GIBBES MUSEUM OF ART 135 Meeting St, Charleston 843.722.2706 | gibbesmuseum.org @thegibbesmuseum
Spring 2020 | 75
Red, Gold and Black, 1957, by Mary Alice Leath Thomas (American, 1905 – 1959); Lacquer, gold leaf, and palladium leaf on Masonite; 48 x 40 inches; 2008.08.04; The Johnson Collection, Spartanburg, South Carolina
CENTRAL TO THEIR LIVES: SOUTHERN WOMEN ARTISTS IN THE JOHNSON COLLECTION | THROUGH MAY 3
Spanning the decades between the late 1890s and early 1960s, Central to Their Lives brings together for the first time the paintings and sculptures of 42 diverse women who made significant contributions to art of the South. This exhibition examines the challenges female artists faced during a period in which women’s social, cultural, and political roles were being redefined and reinterpreted. Whether working from dedicated studio spaces, in spare rooms at home, or on the world stage, the artists showcased made remarkable impacts by fostering future generations of artists through instruction, incorporating new aesthetics into the fine arts, and challenging the status quo. Works by leading figures in the Charleston Renaissance are included such as Alice Ravenel Huger Smith and Elizabeth O’Neill Verner, as well as Corrie McCallum, Minnie Evans, Anne Goldthwaite, Clementine Hunter, and Augusta Savage. GIBBES MUSEUM OF ART 135 Meeting St, Charleston 843.722.2706 | gibbesmuseum.org @thegibbesmuseum
76 | theartmag.com
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academy.themodernconnection.com
Enroll Today! Your hostess: Ashley T Caldwell CEO of The Modern Connection
PERFORMING ARTS
Charleston Theatre
K E E P U P W I T H T H E L AT E S T A RT S E V E N T S AT T H E A RT M AG . C O M / E V E N T S OR BY SIGNING UP FOR T H E A RT M AG N E W S L E T T E R
34 WEST 200 Meeting St | 843.901.9343 34west.org
GAILLARD CENTER 95 Calhoun St | 843.724.5212 gaillardcenter.org
FEB 28 – MAY 2: SOMETHING TO TALK ABOUT
MARCH 31: THE PLAY THAT GOES WRONG
A musical-comedy straight out of your favorite rom-com: It’s Frasier meets Sleepless in Seattle.
What would happen if Sherlock Holmes and Monty Python had an illegitimate Broadway baby? You’d get The Play That Goes Wrong, Broadway & London’s awardwinner comedy
MAY 8 – MAY 30: HITCHCOCK A dreary radio hour quickly turns epic with the return of 34 West’s most requested production. NATIONAL THEATRE LIVE AT 34 WEST MARCH 29: CYRANO DE BERGERAC CHARLESTON STAGE AT DOCK STREET THEATRE 135 Church St | 843.577.7183 charlestonstage.com APRIL 1 – 26: BRIGHT STAR A new Blue Ridge Mountains, bluegrass Broadway musical from the comic mind of Steve Martin and the musical genius of Edie Brickell. Set in Asheville, this moving musical, with its Tony and Grammy nominated bluegrass score, lit up Broadway in 2016, and now Charleston Stage gives us its Charleston premiere.
PURE THEATRE 134 Cannon St | 843.723.4444 puretheatre.org APRIL 17 – MAY 9: FAIRVIEW Winner of the 2019 Pulitzer Prize for Drama and the 2018-2019 Susan Smith Blackburn Prize, Fairview is a searing examination of families, drama, family dramas, and the insidiousness of white supremacy.
QUEEN STREET PLAYHOUSE 20 Queen St | 843.722.4487 queenstreetplayhouse.org APRIL 3 – 19: MATILDA THE MUSICAL VILLAGE REP AT WOOLFE STREET PLAYHOUSE 34 Woolfe St | 843.856.1579 woolfestreetplayhouse.com APRIL: CAKE MAY 9: A GENTLEMAN’S GUIDE TO LOVE AND MURDER Spring 2020 | 77
DOWNTOWN Visual Arts
*Charleston Gallery Associate Member CGA Art Walks are held the first Friday of each month, 5-8pm
Gallery Guide
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1. Carolina Antique Maps and Prints
91 Church St | 843.722.4773 carolinaantiqueprints.com
2. Dog & Horse
Fine Art & Portraiture*
102 Church St. | 843.577.5500 dogandhorsefineart.com
3. Charleston Renaissance Gallery
103 Church St | 843.723.0025 charlestonrenaissancegallery.com
4. Helena Fox Fine Art* 106-A Church St 843.723.0073 helenafoxfineart.com
5. DiNello Art Gallery
111 E Bay St | 843.764.9941 lauradinello.com
14. Horton Hayes Fine Art*
27. Alkyon Arts and Antiques
15. Revealed Art Gallery*
28. Meyer Vogl Gallery*
30 State St | 843.958.0014 hortonhayes.com 119-A Church St 843.872.5606 revealedgallery.com
16. Gaye Sanders
Fisher Gallery*
124 Church St | 843.958.0010 gayesandersfisher.com
17. John Carroll Doyle Art Gallery*
125 Church St | 843.577.7344 johncdoyle.com
18. Miller Gallery*
149 1/2 East Bay St 843.764.9281 millergallerychs.com
120 Meeting St | 843.276.5899 alkyon.us 122 Meeting St. | 843.805.7144 meyervogl.com
29. Principle Gallery*
125 Meeting St | 843.727.4500 principlegallery.com
30. Sportsman’s Gallery*
165 King St | 843.727.1224 sportsmansgallery.com
31. Hagan Fine Art*
177 King Street | 843.901.8124 haganfineart.com
32. Reinert Fine Art*
179 King St. | 843.345.1785 reinertfineart.com
6. Corrigan Gallery*
19. Charleston Artist Guild*
33. LePrince Fine Art*
7. Neema Gallery*
20. W. Andre Allen
34. Audubon Gallery*
7 Broad St | 843.722.9868 corrigangallery.com 1 1/2 Broad St | 843.353.8079 neemagallery.com
8. Edward Dare Gallery
31 Broad St | 843.853.5002 edwarddare.com
9. Martin Gallery*
18 Broad St | 843.723.7378 martingallerycharleston.com
10. The George Gallery
54 Broad St | 843.579.7328 georgegalleryart.com
11. Ella Walton Richardson Fine Art*
58 Broad St | 843.722.3660 ellarichardson.com
12. Cecil Bryne Gallery*
60 Broad St | 843.312.1891 cecilbyrnegallery.com
13. Mary Martin Gallery of Fine Art
103 Broad St | 843.723.0303 marymartinart.com
160 East Bay St | 843.722.2425 charlestonartistguild.com
Contemporary Art Gallery 140 East Bay St | 843.732.9011 wandreallencontemporary artgallery.com
21. Anglin Smith Fine Art*
9 Queen St | 843.853.0708 anglinsmith.com
22. The Vendue*
19 Vendue Rg | 843.577.7970 thevendue.com
23. Robert Lange Studios*
2 Queen St | 843.805.8052 robertlangestudios.com
24. Gordon Wheeler Gallery* 180 E Bay St | 843.722.2546 gordonwheelergallery.com
25. Lowcountry Artists Gallery*
148 E Bay St | 843.577.9295 lowcountryartists.com
26. Atrium Art Gallery*
61 Queen St | 843.973.3300 atriumartgallery.com
184 King St | 843.442.1664 leprince.com 190 King St | 843.853.1100 audubonart.com
35. Chuma Gullah Gallery
188 Meeting St | 843.722.1702 gallerychuma.com
36. One of A Kind Art and Fine Craft
74 N Market St | 843.534.1774 oneofakindgallery.com
37. Studio 151*
175 Church St | 843.579.9725 studio151finearts.com
38. Tate Nation
257 King St. | 843.568.9911 tatenation.com
39. Jennifer Black
265 King St | 843.763.0861 lowcountrystudio.com/Jennifer.htm
40. Grand Bohemian Gallery* 55 Wentworth St 843.724.4130 grandbohemiangallery.com
Spring 2020 | 79
MIDTOWN
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41. Ben Ham Images
43. King Street Studios
45. Sanavandi Gallery
42. Mitchell Hill*
44. Trager Contemporary*
46. Fritz Porter
511 EKing R St | 843.628.5515 UG Hthecharlestonphotographer.com
416 King St | 843.410.1495 benhamimages.com
577 King St. | 843.882.5464 M tragercontermporary.com OR
414 King St | 843.577.0400 mitchellhillinc.com
701 East Bay St | 843.207.4804 fritzporter.com
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66 Spring St. | 843.937.0107 sanavandiart.com
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INAUGURAL BENEFIT AUCTION a silent and live auction event
MARCH 26, 2020 7-10PM HARBORSIDE EAST 28 BRIDGESIDE BLVD, MT. PLEASANT, SC All proceeds will benefit Yo Art and their mission within the community.
For more information or to purchase tickets, visit www.yoartinc.org
Awake!
EMERG I N G ARTI STS OF CH ARL EST O N M ARCH 12 - AP RI L 30
Featuring KATE COME N, KR IS TY BIS HOP,
TAYL O R FAULKNE R AND PAIGE FE IGLE Y SMYT HE
1 30 4 ERCKMAN N D R. | M T. P L EASAN T | 8 4 3 . 2 8 4 . 3 7 2 1
and hand-knotted to create a one of a
ith a big move comes big changes. In addition to our new space on King Street,
kind piece. The bright residual colors of
Mitchell Hill has added a full-service rug
the saris, the natural shine of silk, and the
gallery with endless inventory.
variation of the tone and texture work in unison to create a visual feast.
Each rug in our gallery has a story. Sari Silk rugs are made from old sari
This hand-crafted work of art took one
garments designed to be worn by Indian
year to weave, resulting in a luxurious and
women. Each sari has been unraveled into
sophisticated modern rug that’s a beauty
individual strands then carefully re-spun
to the eye and so soft to the touch.
414 KING STREET mitchellhillinc.com
CHARLESTON SC 29403
843.577.0400
@mitchellhillcharleston
414 KING STREET CHARLESTON SC 29403 843.577.0400 @mitchellhillcharleston