Visual arts in Georgia began in 1895. From this year until around 1960, Georgia was a place that provided great support for its artists, as well as provided the facilities for these artists to showcase their talents.
The roots of Georgian art began in Atlanta and Savannah. In 1895, the Cotton States and International Exposition was held in Atlanta, and featured a wide variety of national and international art. This sparked the interests of would-be Georgian artists, and within the year the Emory University Museum, the High Museum of Art, and an art school was established.
The Atlanta Catalyst and Savannah Solidifier
The Cotton States Exposition marked the beginning of the Georgia's very ambitious art history. By 1900, the artistic community of Atlanta was characterized by portraits and still-life works, and to some degree, landscape paintings. Some of the most notable artists during this time included Adelaide Everhart, William Merritt Chase and Hal Alexander Courtney Morrison. None of these artists were native born, but resided in Georgia. It was Savannah that would give birth to the first successful, native Georgian artist.
If Atlanta was the catalyst that sparked Georgia's artistic craze, then it was Savannah that solidified its place in Georgian society. Of Georgia's cities, Savannah has the deepest legacy of turning out artists and supporting the arts in the Peach State. The artistic history of Georgia had been forming in Savannah long before artistic fever swept through Atlanta. The Telfair Academy of Arts and Sciences had been showcasing artworks for ten years already.
When the gallery opened its doors in 1886, it was under the direction of famous German artist Carl Brandt. After Brandt's death in 1905, duties were handed to Detroit native Gari Melchers, who had studied art at the Royal Academy at Dusselodorf, in Germany, as well as the Ecole des Beaux-Arts, in Paris. Melchers became most famous for his paintings The Unpretentious Gardner and The Plantation Home. His success with these paintings led to widespread notoriety, and to the Telfair playing host to some of the most highly respected American impressionist paintings.
Other talented painters who lived in Savannah during this time included Emma Cheves Wilkins, who studied under Carl Brandt, Valerie Chisholm, Mary Comer Lane, and Christopher Patrick Hussey. However, it was landscape and still-life painter Lila Cabanis, a Savannah native, who was the first Georgian to become well known for their art. Other Georgia natives who made their artistic mark include William Posey Silva, whose work glorifies both the South and California, where he lived for a time.
Folk Art
The term folk art was meant to describe the work of those early Georgia craftsman and artists. Folk art gets its name from the fact that these crafts were created and painted either for the good of a community, or depicted the community.
Georgian folk art came under scrutiny early in the Peach State's culture. This was due in part to the talents of craftspeople, such as Ulysses Davis, Howard Finster, Mattie Lou O'Kelly, and Nellie Mae Rowe, who were only a small part of a larger group of talented Georgia artisans. These popular craftspeople were known for their craft style. In contrast to the more traditional forms of folk art, the works of these artists centered on their view of the Georgia lifestyle. Their work captured Georgia heritage and its beauty, while the work of traditional folk artists served the purpose of utility, as well as beauty.
New Deal Photography
In 1935, photography found its niche in the Georgia art scene. Photographers who were hired to work for President Roosevelt's New Deal Farm Security Administration documented living conditions all over the United States, particularly in the areas considered to be destitute. The most famous of these photographers in Georgia included Walker Evans, who photographed the Hermitage Plantation in Savannah, the black community in Atlanta, Main Street in Macon, and new housing in Eatonton. All of these photographs are on record with the library of congress and beautifully illustrate the living conditions in Georgia across different classes and races. This style of photography became a trend across the nation, but more so in Georgia, where photographers traveled through to photograph living conditions, as well as local crafts, businesses and the scenery.
Georgia Art Today
The last half of the 20th Century has remained successful for the Georgia art community. During the 1960s, only a handful of exhibiting artists lived in Georgia. This declining trend changed for the better with the appointment of Gudmund Vigtel as director of the High Museum of Art. Vigtel's influence revived an interest in the arts in the state, as well as the building of the Heath Gallery, a commercial gallery in Atlanta that specialized in exhibiting contemporary art. Other important art galleries which followed included the Alexander Gallery, established by famed artist Judith Alexander. It was the first gallery in Georgia to display work by southern folk artists. Also, there's the Nexus Gallery, which was established by photographers Jim Fazer and John McWilliams.
Today, there are many museums and art galleries (including some mentioned above) which people can visit to learn more about this important aspect of Georgian heritage. The influence and precedents that art has had on Georgia's culture should be experienced in order to truly appreciate them.
Bring home a handmade souvenir from Georgia.
