The 2012 art exhibits at The Clayton Center feature homegrown talent from Clayton and Johnston County.
Twenty artists will show their work this year, including 11 from Clayton, four from other Johnston towns, one from Garner, and four from outside the Triangle.
Dorothy Demboski, head of the exhibits committee for Clayton Visual Arts, Inc., says, "This year we made a conscious decision to seek out and choose local artists to showcase in our exhibits. Clayton and Johnston County have a wealth of talented, practicing artists. More than people think."
Demboski also thinks local art compares well with work produced throughout North Carolina and "it will bring joy to those who own it."
Clayton Visual Arts schedules the monthly art exhibits and meet-the-artist receptions at The Clayton Center, 111 E. Second St. Each show hangs for a month.
Here is the lineup:
February's featured artist is Walter Day, a Clayton resident since 1983 who paints in oil.
March will showcase watercolor works by the late William Leslie Jr. of Morganton. The exhibit will complement his son Bill's concert at The Clayton Center on March 11. Bill Leslie, longtime news anchor at WRAL-TV in Raleigh, will perform a program of original Appalachian Celtic music with the Celtic-fusion ensemble, Lorica, as part of the Palladium Series. A reception for Leslie will be 5-6:30 p.m. following his performance and will spotlight his father's art.
Two Clayton artists will exhibit in April, Jane Prete and Kathleen Nobles. Prete, president of Clayton Visual Arts this year, moved to Clayton six years ago and paints in watercolor and other media. She is winner of Clayton Visual Arts' 2011 Poster Contest with the work "Flipside." Nobles, who returned to the Triangle area about four years ago, is owner with her husband Vic Ganoe of the Coffee Mill and Flipside restaurants, where her work is on display. She paints in oils and acrylics.
May's exhibit will feature art by Clayton High School art students who will showcase what they've learned.
A three-woman show is on tap for June. Artists are Ann Tahir of Clayton, Jo Tucker of Four Oaks, and Lin Frye of Oxford. Tahir works in mixed media, Tucker paints in acrylic and oil, and Frye works in mixed water media.
In July, longtime area favorite Doug Strickland of Benson will pair with Dan Lee of Four Oaks. Strickland, who paints in oil on canvas, won an Award of Excellence in 2010 in Clayton Visual Arts' Art Faire competition. He also won the 2007 Poster Contest with "Woman's Club of Clayton." Lee works in oil on canvas and charcoal. He also was the 2009 Poster Contest winner with "Entrance to Historic Clayton."
A three-person show is slated for August. Featured are Thurmond Goins II and Keama Richardson, both of Clayton, and Kirk Adam of Smithfield. Goins works in acrylic, Richardson works in ink and spray paint, and Adam in mixed media.
September will bring entries in the annual $1,825 Art Faire competition. Last year more than 50 artists entered, and half were from Clayton. The field was the most impressive in the event's 13-year history.
In October, Demboski of Clayton will be paired with Tom Hale of Goldsboro. Demboski is past president of Clayton Visual Arts and has lived in Clayton since 2005. She is creator of "Clayton Patchwork," the Town's first mural, which she painted on the second-floor landing at The Clayton Center. Hale works in oil on canvas and has been painting since the 1960s. His paintings hang in several galleries in the Southeast.
November will bring a four-person show, Clayton jeweler-painters John and Jovi McFadden; Clayton artist Heidi-Lee Peach and Goldsboro artist Toni Murgas. The McFaddens came to Clayton three years ago from Ohio and have established a jewelry business on Main Street. John McFadden also curates the art exhibits at the Clayton Steakhouse on Main Street. Peach is an award winner from the 2011 Art Faire competition and a member of Clayton Visual Arts. Murgas, also a member of CVA, is an emerging young artist and works in acrylic.
The calendar year wraps up in December with a two-woman show for the Christmas season. Popular artist Gail O'Neil, a Clayton native, will team with Japan native Keiko Genka of Garner. O'Neil paints subjects in vibrant acrylic colors and until recently sold her work from GO Designs on Main Street. Genka works in acrylic on canvas.
The 2013 season begins in January as it did this year, with student competition in the Woman's Club Arts and Crafts Festival, plus an exhibit by artists of Clayton Visual Arts. Next year's slate will be arranged following a call for artists in September.
All exhibits and receptions are free and open to everyone.
Clayton Visual Arts, Inc., is a nonprofit, 501 (c) 3 organization of volunteers dedicated to bringing art to Clayton. It is supported in part by grants from the Town of Clayton Cultural Arts Fund, the Johnston County Arts Council, and the Johnston County Visitors Bureau.
