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November Issue 2006
Penn Center on St. Helena Island, SC, Features Works by Diane Britton Dunham
Each year at the renowned Penn Center on St. Helena Island, SC, a featured artist presents their pieces to the thousands of cultural travelers who venture from across the world for the Heritage Days celebration (Nov. 9-11, 2006). This year, the showcased artist not only offers a bountiful collection, but also tells an absorbing story through artistic expression. The work of Diane Britton Dunham will be presented at the York W. Bailey Museum on the Penn Center campus in the exhibit, Preserving Our Legacy, featured in three separate segments from Nov. 9 through Jan. 30, 2007.
Diane Britton Dunham's work has been recognized internationally as a genuine depiction of the history, culture, and traditions of the Lowcountry culture. Pieces created by Dunham represent the landscape, customs, and heritage of the state's coastal region. Frequently incorporating distinguishable elements that characterize her pieces, Dunham is well known for her brilliant coloring, intricate human and landscape forms, and themes that represent life in South Carolina's Lowcountry region.
A self-taught mixed media artist and instructor, Dunham has received honors and awards from organizations like the Artisan Center, the Gullah Festival, and the Beaufort Art Association. Her works have also been featured in national publications including Southern Living Magazine and Black Enterprise Magazine.
Throughout the past year, Dunham has put together
an astounding artistic portrayal of South Carolina's coastal culture
and beauty. Though some of her works are currently displayed
in quite a few galleries throughout the area, this will be the
first unveiling of a number of new works.
Born and educated in Ohio, Dunham draws from countless memories
of her family's experience as the inspiration for her artwork.
Touched by the commonalities that all Africans in America share,
Dunham creates works that celebrate the common traditions of the
historical African American cultures, particularly those of the
Lowcountry of South Carolina and the coastal parishes of Louisiana.
Dunham spent many childhood years in Louisiana and later, at the age of 25, she moved to the coastal Lowcountry of South Carolina, where she has lived over half her life. Both of these highly recognized regions impact the style, technique, and subject matter that distinguish her pieces. While the Gullah culture of South Carolina is unique in its pure preservation of culture through undisturbed African lineages, the Creole culture is a celebration of the blending of French, African, Spanish and Native American cultures. Paradoxically, Dunham is able to capture significant components of each culture within her creations.
Dunham currently resides in Burton, SC, with her husband, musician Phillip Griffin.
Heritage Days is a celebration of Gullah/Geechee/Sea Island folk arts, food, music and West African cultural legacy at the Penn Center. This event, in its 24th year, draws over 15,000 visitors. For more info about this event call 843/838 2432 or visit (www.penncenter.com).
Situated in Beaufort County, Penn Center was designated as a national historical landmark in 1974. It is the site of Penn School, the first school in the South for formerly enslaved Africans, which was formed in 1862 and served as an active educational institution until 1953. Today, Penn Center is considered one of the premier centers for the study of the Gullah culture and is poised to be designated as one of the nation's most historically significant African American cultural institutions under the newly legislated Gullah-Geechee Heritage Act.
For more information check our SC Institutional
Gallery listings, call the Penn Center at 843/838 2432 or visit
(www.penncenter.com).
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Copyright© 2006 by PSMG, Inc., which published Charleston
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