Talent Abounds at Locals
by Bailey Basham, Messenger Staff Writer
The summer season at Locals in Sewanee is well underway, providing a space for artists and craftsmen from the Mountain area to display and sell their work.
Locals will exhibit a curated collection of career bests through Saturday, Aug. 3.
Ashley Charlton, gallery manager, has been with Locals since May of 2014. She said the gallery provides an opportunity for creators from the area to share their work.
“This area specifically has a whole lot of artists that are involved with these age-old traditions, such as our ceramicists, sculptors, our woodworkers—all of those are centered around Southern craft tradition. This area, unlike some others, has an exceptional group of diverse styles, materials, in terms of our artists. We are very lucky to have such an array — copper, wood, stone, paper, wax, and all these different mediums. There is too much talent here not to have some place to exhibit,” she said.
This season’s featured artist is Larry Todd Wilson, who has been sculpting and painting for more than 20 years.
Wilson said his process of creating involves leaning into the natural curiosity of the artist’s mind, seeking to offer an opportunity to become more aware of what captivates the observer.
“My process is a flow activity, with minimal mind chatter and a great deal of physicality and curiosity. I paint with my hands, not brushes. For sculpture, the method is direct carving with hammers, chisels, rifflers and rasps,” he said. “My goal is to show engaging, layered color in mixed-media paintings and show elegant, sculpted forms in alabaster.
Wilson’s pieces will be displayed alongside the work of 15 other artists, including Jim Ann Howard, G. Sanford McGee, Jimmy Abegg, Susan Church, Jamey “Otis” Chernicky, Connie Ulrich, Thomas Spake, Jeanie Stephenson, Bill Mauzy, Bean & Bailey, James Tucker, Melodie Grace, Nick Fletcher, Hal Broyles, Nancy Wallace and Phyllis A. Narus.
Locals is open from noon to 5 p.m., Wednesday through Saturday. For more information, visit www.myerspoint.com/locals/ or call (865) 567-5563.