I had to make a gas and grocery run to BJ’s in Summerville, SC, Saturday morning so I figured to go so I could be at the door at 10am when The Public Works Art Center would be open. I’d be in my usual gloves and mask (mask required to enter) for shopping and I doubt many people would be there on a Saturday morning since they just announced re-opening not too long ago. I had hoped to get there sooner than this, months ago, but then the COVID-19 Pandemic came along and screwed those plans. The Center is located at 135 West Richardson Avenue, which besides Main Street, is one of the central shopping areas of downtown Summerville, just across the Berkeley County border into Dorchester County, making it the closest visual art center to where I live at Bonneau Beach, up on the eastern shores of Lake Moultrie. The Center is right next door to People, Places & Quilts, where I used to drop off copies of “Carolina Arts”, back when we were printing our publication – back in the old days. I found a parking space (free parking) right in front of the Center’s front entrance, and there is parking on the side of the building and a few spaces in the back of the building – all free.
Once inside, I was met by the docent (volunteer of that morning) and she give me a short tour of what was to be seen. This was only her second time at the Center, so she was kind of new too, but it’s not two complicated. On the first floor they have two galleries, West Gallery and East Gallery, a room for Sculpture in the South, an organization which purchases sculptures and places them around downtown Summerville, mostly in Azalea Park, a few blocks from the Center, the new home of Carnes Crossroads Artist Cooperative, and several studios of their resident artists. They are close to opening up the basement section of the Center where more studios are located and spaces for classes will be located.
Since my visit, I’ve seen reports that The Public Works Art Center has purchased the building they were leasing from the City of Summerville, which they have had a great relationship with – as they should – the Center will be bringing lots of people to Summerville from around the region, as the word get out.
So, after the tour I did my usual look around the galleries before I start taking photos to get a feel for what is there and what I want to point out. In the West Gallery was the exhibit, “Alone Together”, featuring works by the artists who have studios at the Center. And, I’ve got to say, I was very surprised and really impressed. I know a lot of artists who live in Summerville, but none of their works were on display – all these artists were unknown to me (except for one), although I think one just friended me on Facebook. So here was a group of gifted and talented artists who I was discovering for the first time. And to the artists who had work in that room, just because you don’t see a photo of your work in this report doesn’t mean I didn’t like your work – some were behind glass, which is hard to get a good photo of and the other reason is I want people to come see the exhibits themselves. That’s why I never focus in on everything. I don’t want to document exhibits and have people view them at home, I want them to get out and see them. And, in the age of the Pandemic – that can be done safely. I also noticed a number of red dots on some of the works which told me that other people agreed with my taste in art and that people have been visiting these exhibits.
Works by Judy Cirelli
Work by Will Cotton
Work by Carla Johannesmeyer
Work by Pam Shanley
This exhibit included works by: Karen Burnish, Judy Cirelli, Will Cotton, Andrea Davis, Daniel Diehl, Dave Dixon, Stephanie Drawdy, Sarah Camille Soltani Icely, Carla Johannesmeyer, Susan Lowcavage, Alex Radin (the one artist I knew), Gayle Sauer, Pam Shanley, Angela Turner, Joy Varley, Ann Watkins, Barry Watkins, and Bernadette Wladyka. They had information about all the artists posted so you could learn a little about them and their work. The Center provided good information about the artists and all works were marked well – which is not always the case in some art venues I’ve been in.
In the East Gallery was the exhibit “June”, featuring photographs by Stephanie Justice Shank, which was an MFA Thesis Exhibition from the Savannah College of Art and Design, in Savannah, GA. That was a surprise too, but I figured the artist might have some connection to Summerville. Photos under glass are hard to capture without the right equipment and those with dark backgrounds act like mirrors, so I just took a few general shots of this gallery to show what it looked like. Shank’s photos were a documentation of her Grandmother’s domestic life. You’ll see a lot of objects not often used today in the 21st century. But if this Pandemic keeps up we may discover a lot of these old items re-entering our daily lives. I can only speculate that the title of this exhibit was her Grandmother’s name. As a student just leaving college Shank will learn that you have to give your audience more clues if you want to get your message across – even MFA’s have a lot to learn in the real world. It was an interesting exhibit, I just couldn’t take close up photos of any of the images without showing you me in a mask holding my phone up – kind of distracting.
Next was a visit to the Carnes Crossroads Artist Cooperative, which used to be in Goose Creek, SC, but I never got by there to see what they had to offer. We included them in our publication but I just never got there – something they shared with lots of galleries and art spaces around both North and South Carolina. If I visited them all there would be no time to produce this arts publication. They occupy one of the studio spaces on the first floor, just off the East Gallery. Their room is jam-packed with lots of art – a something for everyone kind of place. A lot of the artists with works in the cooperative also had works in the ”Alone Together” exhibit, meaning some of them had studios in the Center too. As I looked around I began to see a pattern – one of these artist is one of those multi medium artist, who seems to excel at everything they do. Her name was Bernadette Wladyka. She had three watercolor paintings that caught my eye at first and then I began to see other works by her – jewelry and wearable art. I worked hard to get a photo of one of the watercolors I liked – it’s not too bad, but her works look so much better in person. But, again, she was just one of the outstanding artists with works on display at this cooperative. If you’re looking for an unusual gift to give someone or for yourself, this shop is your ticket.
Watercolor by Bernadette Wladyka
Paintings and jewelry by Bernadette Wladyka
So, I finished my visit in just about an hour and while I was there only a few artists came in to enter their studios and I was the only visitor. This was good for me and social distancing, but not so good for the Center. A dozen or less people could have been there and stayed apart and enjoyed these exhibits. I think both these exhibits will be up until July 31, 2020, but you can call and check on that to make sure. These days things change quickly.
Current hours are: Thur. & Fri., from 10am-2pm and Sat., 10am-6pm, but they might expand those hours if demand shows they need to.
Current Art Center guidelines: For the time being, adult visitors “must” wear a mask while in the building in an effort to help protect one another. It would be great if you could bring your own, but disposable masks will be provided at the entrance should you need one; visitors will be asked to sanitize their hands upon entrance to the building, and maintain social distancing guidelines once in the building (keep a distance of 6 feet, do not gather in groups, etc); the front door will be propped open during open hours; based on the Governor’s orders, 39 people can gather in our building per our assembly square footage; and staff will wear masks, follow social distancing guidelines, wash hands for 20 seconds or longer after using the restroom, and sanitize surfaces on a regular schedule throughout the day.
I look forward to going back as I spend a lot of time going to Summerville – at least once a month for supplies. I’d like to see some solo exhibits by some of these resident artists. You should go check them out – that’s if you are leaving your house at all.
You can call The Public Works Art Center at 803/860-0742, e-mail to (info@publicworksartcenter.org), or visit (http://publicworksartcenter.org/).