Selecting the artists for this annual feature is somewhat akin to to answering a child's question about him and his siblings: "Which one of us is your favorite?"

The reality is that I love them all - and the dozens more who make up the growing artistic community of coastal Georgia and South Carolina. But, darn it, I can't publish 500 at once.

In making this year's selections, I looked for artists who were talented and projecting their own unique artistic "voice." This eclectic group ranges in age from the mid-20s to nearing 70. Yet, each is in his or her own way, continuing to push for excellence, to find the beauty, the humor, the power of their spirit through their art.

Tim A. Rutherford Managing Editor


Sandy Branam: Hurry, hurry, hurry!



"Chef Training at the Bread and Butter Cafe"

More Artist's Images - PDF File

When I met Sandy Branam in what became the first of many interviews, she told me she had to hurry, because she'd begun painting way too late in life.

Hurry she has. The 65-year-old artist is hardly focused (on either medium or subject matter) but she is prolific and has carved out a niche with her big acrylic-pastel-watercolor-whatever-she-has-on-hand creations.

And to say Branam is not focused is high praise. In fact, it's her whirling dervish attack of life that keeps her rocket-powered brush going nearly as fast her mind.

Branam has made whimsy fun again with her parodies of, er, big folks at the beach and high-falutin' social events. She has stirred us with expressionistic images that mirror her sensitive soul poured onto canvas. She has inspired us all to reach for the creative stars, to try something new, to try something bold - to stab our brushes into paint with wild abandon.

She's capable of creating tight little watercolors for tourists to take home - paintings of church steeples and historic sign posts - but she's left that behind and has made that important connection between heart and canvas, along the way attracting patrons from all walks of life.

The artist just came off an exhibit at Gallery SPACE in which she blew viewers out of the water with her diversity, creativity and passion. Sandy was the subject of the November 2002 Coastal Antiques & Art cover story.

Here's to hurrying, Sandy... and to the beauty - and the fun - you've brought us! You can see Branam's work in The Gallery in Savannah's City Market. Contact the artist by calling (912) 308-8286.


Marcus Kenney: Over the top talent



"Untitled,Butte, Montana"

More Artist's Images - PDF File

This young Savannah artist is hard to label - and that's what I like about him. However, unlike some artists who flit from one medium to another yet never master one, Kenney successfully traverses three different worlds - painter, sculptor and photographer.

With an eye for irony and a talent for turning found objects into art that stirs a smile, a frown or a gasp, Kenney masterfully negotiates the real function of art - to stir an emotion from the viewer.

The Savannah College of Art and Design graduate's (MFA, photography) paintings and multi-media works satirize, offer commentary or point out odd juxtapositions. Sculpturally, he tends to larger installations, but I've seen his smaller pieces equally at home in Savannah's elegant Victorian palaces and stark, art-friendly contemporary homes.

And, he excels at my favorite art form - photography. Whether he's capturing the innocence of playing children or the hub-bub of bustling urban life, Kenney is as at home peering through a viewfinder as he is in front of an easel or binding together another man's trash. The results of all three are remarkable.

One of just 30 artists selected to exhibit in the traveling Georgia Triennial show, Kenney shows in a variety of Savannah venues from time to time, and late last year was chosen to create an installation at The College of Charleston. To arrange a viewing of the artist's current work, call (912) 352-0100. Kenney also has a website at www.marcuskenney.com.


Jon Nelson: Reaching the sky



"Pines at Dusk"

More Artist's Images - PDF File

Jon Nelson has been taking his time.

In an interview with me about his MFA thesis show in spring 2002, Nelson joked that the theme of his graduate studies in painting had been "speed kills," a tongue in cheek jab at the decade he spent finishing his degree.

But Nelson's exhibit and the subsequent paintings prove that he wasn't sleeping through class.

In a marketplace where marsh scenes and big blue skies are a dime a dozen, Nelson's moody, painted-on-location works capture the genuine essence of the Lowcountry. A sliver of moon pokes out of a velvety sky, weather-beaten palms lean against the wind and the myriad hues and shadows of the marsh resonate in living fields of color.

Nelson proves his mettle by working large canvases in plein air, but is equally confident with his interpretations in small works, too. A still life here or there breaks up his portfolio - fun paintings that rely upon light and shadow to create cheerful tableaus of everyday objects.

Getting a one-on-one with the prolific painter is difficult, but his work is easily accessible - he's represented in Savannah's The Gallery and Gallery 209 - as well as Guild of Bluffton Artists and Pluff Mudd Gallery in Bluffton, co-owned with his wife, Peggy, who is also a talented painter. Nelson is also represented by ElderArt Gallery in Charlotte, N.C., and North Beach Gallery on Amelia Island.

Contact the artist by calling (843) 757-5551.


Haywood Nichols: Boxes as art



Bamboo and ebony box

More Artist's Images - PDF File

His blue work shirts bear two patches over the breast pockets. One is monogrammed "Haywood Nichols." The other simply reads: "Sculptor."

Depending on which collector you talk to, Nichols is called a furniture maker, a bowl turner or a sculptor. However, in his mind, the art is the thing and Nichols dwells in a creative space where design and beauty reign over function and familiarity.

He has, in reality, created all three. Stunning furniture inspired by historic designs, sculptural works in bronze, wood or stone, and bowls and hollow vessels have been his forte. Nichols' portfolio represents a body of work that is at once both simple and powerful - summoning energy from graceful lines and sympathetic materials. Whether you see his tiger stripe cat, sculpted in tiger maple, or his life-size wooden nude, even novices get it, they feel the power of the wood grain wrapping around the works' graceful lines and contours. His soapstone cat languishes peacefully, its rock-hard body shimmering with deceptively soft highlights.

But these days, Nichols is working smaller, making wooden boxes that again fuse unique materials, elegant design and stellar craftsmanship. Like all of Nichols' pieces, these are tactile, really requiring touch to complete the story.

But don't for a minute think these boxes are crafted to hold buttons or baubles or, as Nichols has said, handkerchiefs - they are painstaking works of art created under the watchful eye of a sculptor.

I've said of Nichols that he is the most intellectual artist I've ever met, quoting Shakespeare to explain his role as an artist, drawing analogies between great musical scores and design. His newest work, his little boxes, bring home the point eloquently.

To arrange an appointment with the artist, call (912) 308-1237.


Jan Pagratis: Her heart leads the way



"Morning Light"

More Artist's Images - PDF File

For all of her academic training, Jan Clayton Pagratis connects most often with her work when she lets her heart sing.

That is not a criticism of her thoughtfulness, her intellectualism or her sensitivity - all three play a part in her most significant creations. More directly phrased, what may have been born of her mind is given the breath of life when she makes that magical emotional connection.

Moody, atmospheric pastels were her mainstay but Pagratis has explored her own style, challenged her own creativity and pushed the envelope over the past four years. She has come out the other side with a deeper understanding of herself and the ability to work simultaneously in a variety of media - striking a chord with seemingly every new image.

Today, European-inspired landscapes flow from her brush, fantasy scenes in reality, but images that she says trigger gallery visitors to try to put name to place.

And all those years of experimentation yielded a mountain of paint chips, little bits and pieces Pagratis now assembles into abstracts that dance wildly with color, texture and, in some cases, remnants of paint tubes.

Add to the mix a body of work that encompasses fluid little watercolors, oil landscapes and, of course, her rich pastels, and Pagratis emerges as the cornerstone of collection. And, talk to her, and you'll come away with the feeling that we still haven't seen her at her zenith.

With an exhibition history extending back to 1991, Pagratis earned her MFA from George Washington University in 1997 and has placed work in nearly two dozen public and private collections. She is represented in five major Southeastern galleries, including her "home," Chroma Gallery in Savannah.

You can see Pagratis' work there, or call (912) 232-2787.

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Where Are They Now?

An update on last year's "Five to Collect"

Bill Zorn
St. Simons Island photographer Bill Zorn returned to China in 2002 - which proved to be the year that set this talented artist on his way. Look for a coffee table book of his China images later this year from the University of Pittsburgh Press, as well as exhibits at Fernbank Museum in Atlanta, Edward Carter Gallery in Lewes, Del. Zorn says other exhibits are in the works, including one at the National Art Gallery in Beijing. Camera Arts Magazine plans a feature on Zorn's work, and in February 2002, the celebrated art photography magazine LensWork published a portfolio of Zorn's work.

Laura Adams
Laura Adams joined The Gallery in City Market full-time in 2002, and her mosaic-like creations continue to evolve. When we last caught up with her at the Telfair Art Fair in November, she was experimenting with the addition of more organic shapes to the paper mosaics. And, she says, more and more of her work reflects her interest in preserving the environmental fragility of her the North Carolina mountains surrounding her second home. Adams also exhibits at The Dolphin and the Mermaid in Thunderbolt, Patina in Atlantic Beach, Fla., and The Barn in Cashiers, N.C.

Phil Stark
Stark remains an active member of The Gallery in City Market and is working on commissions, continues to paint new, originals in watercolor, gouache and oil. He also spent the year expanding his range of reproductions.

Robert Isley
Robert Isley garnered several commission in 2002 - and we featured one of his paintings as the cover art for the "All Things Old & Beautiful" auction to benefit Senior Citizens Inc. Isley remains a staple at Friedman's Fine Art in Savannah and, in November, won a merit award at the Telfair Art Fair.

Jeff Markowsky
Jeff Markowsky continues to work on his 100 canvases of paint tubes. "I'm up to number 56," Markowsky reports. But the young artist and Savannah College of Art and Design instructor also joined the stable of Chroma Gallery in 2002, contributing regular new paintings of urban landscapes.