The Peachtree City Library Art Initiative will finish its seventh successful year with “Cherished” featuring the art of Gwen Brown, Linda Hawley and Martin Pate.
Each artist has selected “Cherished” images to share during the holiday season.
Gwen Brown studied art earning her associate degree in fine art from Clayton State University in two years covering everything from lost wax jewelry making, pottery, and building muscadine vine furniture. Her final semester, she was left alone in the studio with an easel and oil paints, a skeleton, and one other student- she fell in love with the paints and the other painter.
Brown finds inspiration in the faces of the ones she loves, and the magical moments of connection that happen amidst the chaos of daily life. Her favorite subjects are children, families, and still life compositions celebrating the natural world. Gwen takes limited commission projects. Gwen met her husband Kyle in college and together they have raised four children. She is a member of the Fayette Art Society and is serving as President for the 2023 year.
Local artist Linda Hawley enjoys capturing cherished family moments through oil paintings, drawings, and photography. Born and raised amidst the natural splendor of Montana, Linda’s passion for art, nature, and animals developed and continues to inspire her work today.
Linda born and raised in Kalispell, Montana, moved to Georgia in 1988 for her husband Rob’s job with Delta. The following year, Linda started teaching art classes though an art store in Morrow. As her two children grew, she joined a homeschool group call “Master’s Academy of Fine Arts” and spent 10 years teaching all forms of art including: drawing, painting, sculpture, stage crew (props and costumes), jewelry, and papermaking. In 2008 Hawley decided to prioritize her art. Hawley studied at the diDomizio Arts Center in Roswell. She maintains a studio in the Magnolia Office Park in Fayetteville, Ga. “My focus in art at the moment is drawing in graphite/charcoal and oil painting”. Hawley joined Fayette Society of Fine Art in 2022.
Martin Pate, born in South Carolina, graduated from Ringling School of Art in Sarasota, Florida in 1981, and has worked as a professional artist since then. Martin’s ability to paint people and historic sites has led to over 30 years of commissions with the National Park Service. Paintings of Native Americans, Civil War battles, The Underground Railroad, The Battle of the Little Bighorn and many others are used by the NPS for educational purposes. Exhibitions and awards include Oil Painters of America, Society of Illustrators, Punta Gorda National Biennials, one man gallery shows and museum retrospectives. Martin’s award-winning gallery paintings include the figure, southern landscapes, interiors and still life, and have found collectors across the country as well as internationally. Pate is a member of many national professional art associations and the Newnan-Coweta Art Association. He and his wife Rhonda live in Newnan, GA.
The Fayette Art Association (formerly known as Fayette Society of Fine Art), The Newnan-Coweta Art Assocation, and the Peachtree City Photography Club are displaying work throughout the library.
The reception is scheduled for November 18, 3-4:30 at the Peachtree City Library, Willowbend Road. The public is invited. The exhibit continues through December 28, 2023.
