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Ann Harwell: A Fabric Star
I am unsure if I have ever had the pleasure to meet an artist who is so perfectly represented by their art than my meeting with Ann Harwell. You meet Ann and she is the personification of sweetness and humility. Similarly, when you hear that she is a fiber artist who produces quilts, the mistake…
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Tennyson Corley: Ceramic Illustrator
Tennyson Corley grew up in Gaston, SC. Her youth found her surrounded by animals and land in the rural areas right outside of Columbia. Now she and her family reside in Columbia on their small farm full of a menagerie of animals and inspiration for her art. With a donkey, a duck, a bevy of…
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Mike Gibson: Legacy Builder
Mike ‘Gibby-Siz’ Gibson, an artist focused on sacred geometry and topiary, has been all over lately, sharing his knowledge and excitement for the ancient skill of cutting and shaping shrubs and trees into fantastic shapes. From appearing on ‘Clipped’ with Martha Stewart to more recently being featured on ETV’s “Making It Grow” with South Carolina’s…
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Renesha Wolfe: Tradition’s Star
The traditional art of sweetgrass basket weaving, celebrated in the South, was developed out of necessity. Enslaved Africans were made to work the land and waters of the Low Country of South Carolina and needed their tools to work well. As Black people have always done in this country, they made something out of nothing,…
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Who do you LOVE?
I have my favorite artists, whose work I have seen in person, published, or via social media (especially during the Pandemic). I have an ever-growing list of artists that I plan to introduce to you. But, this is not just a passion project for me. I hope to encourage an exchange of information, ideas, and…
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Christopher Lane: Communicating in Color
It was a perfect spring day when I had the pleasure to meet a Columbia power couple, Christopher Lane and Lisa McVety. They will be shocked (and perhaps a little horrified) to read that description, but I would argue that there is extreme power when a couple knows and operates in their strengths so that…
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Mazie Cook: Family Building Community
When your upbringing is rooted in creativity, generosity, and community, it is no surprise that those characteristics would be evident in all you do as you grow. Mazie Cook is an artist/art administrator raised by local, popular artist Trahern “Easel Cathedral” Cook and storyteller/educator/community builder, Lori Cook. And alongside her brother, Walt, a filmmaker, the…
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Kyle C. Coleman: Artfields
Our art person this time is really personal for me. I did a Q & A with my husband, Kyle C. Coleman. Fun fact: we met at an art museum, and art has consistently been a shared joy in our relationship. Kyle C. Coleman has decades of experience in art education and administration. He is…
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Michael Dantzler: A Man of Many Talents
“A jack of all trades is a master of none, but oftentimes better than a master of one,” is the saying I thought of after my conversation with Michael Dantzler. “A jack of all trades is a master of none, but oftentimes better than a master of one,” is the saying I thought of after…
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Andrea Hazel: There Are No Coincidences
Andrea Hazel, a Charleston native whose family can trace their lineage back 400 years in the Holy City, is a watercolorist whose latest work features the city’s landscapes, buildings, and homes. It was her work, Choppin’ Up Some Wood which interested me in her as an artist, and after speaking with her, I could not…
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Olga Yukhno: Being the advocate she needed
Olga Yukhno immigrated to the U.S. in 2008 during the economic crisis; however, this did not dampen her positive outlook on the opportunities ahead. It may seem cliche, but Olga’s experience demonstrates that America is “the land of opportunity.” Olga says, “one of the reasons I love living in the United States is because I…
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Henry “Spirit” Henderson: Hopefully devoted to art
What happens to talented artists who do not want to or cannot afford to attend art school? How do they remain devoted to their gifts AND take care of themselves?The beginning of Henry “Spirit” Henderson’s story is not that unusual. Henry was a talented, young artist who did not know how to break into the…