VALDOSTA – While winter time ushers in darker days, the Annette Howell Turner Center of the Arts’ white walls have undergone a colorful metamorphosis through its new exhibits showcasing the work of local artists Annette Crosby, Kelly Call and Tom Powell.
The center debuted two new exhibits Monday: “Local Color” a large display that combines the work of both Crosby and Call and “It’s a Wonderful Second Life,” which features pottery from craftsman Tom Powell.
Bill Shenton, curator for the Turner Center, said the Turner Center aims to showcase the talents of South Georgia artists through their exhibits.
Crosby is one such artist. She is a current artist-in-residence who has been published in The Palette Magazine, Southern Living Magazine and other publications in South Georgia.
Crosby said she uses texture, layered lines and different shades and hues of colors to create “active, lively, organic” shapes that lead to unexplored abstract dimensions in her work.
She focuses almost exclusively on color relationships, brushwork, pattern and line, creating a composition with only the merest concern for a recognizable image, reference or message.
“Excited by the way colorful shapes fit together, how a line on the surface can cause movement, the surprise of embedded bits of pattern – my work is playful and energetic. I am almost completely concerned with how the elements of art come together to make a strong composition. Sometimes compared to aerial views, puzzle pieces locked together and urban grids, in my work, these are qualities sensed rather than seen,” she said.
“While the result is abstract, every piece begins with a reference – a concrete memory, sensation or even a photograph of a place I have traveled. For viewers, the experience is about creativity and curiosity, moving in close to see the layers, and asking themselves ‘what is this?’”
Call, Crosby’s mentee, was an art educator in the Lanier, Valdosta and Valwood school systems prior to her retirement to focus on painting.
Like Crosby, her work has also been recognized on a national platform, with one of her pieces in the juried show “Works on Paper” and her artwork displayed at the Last Resort Grill, Metal and Petal and the Pretentious Collector Exhibit in Athens.
Call said she draws inspiration from the world around her through her travels.
“Annette has always been a huge mentor to me. It’s why we decided to join as one ‘Local Color’ exhibit for our abstract work,” she said.
“New landscapes, sunsets, colors and textures that I haven’t seen before excite me to get home and recreate on canvas. … (My) favorite quote is from Georgia O’Keefe, ‘My painting is what I have to give back to the world for what the world has given to me.’”
While paint isn’t his form of expression, Powell added some color to his own “carefully crafted” pottery pieces. Powell’s history in wood turning began with his two uncles who were passionate about the art of craftsmanship, and his journey in the field began at the age of 12.
He told attendees at the gallery opening that the title of his exhibit is a play on the movie, “It’s a Wonderful Life,” as he is now a full-time professional wood turner and finds great pleasure in passing along his knowledge to others by teaching apprentices.
“It’s a wonderful craft that I feel is making a comeback and I’m very proud to be a part of facilitating the next generation of wood turners,” he said.
All exhibits will remain open in the galleries through Wednesday, Jan. 4. For more information, call (229) 247-2787 or visit www.turnercenter.org. Patrons who need special assistance may contact the center to make those arrangements.