"creative giving" by kentuck's studio artists: exhibition recap

It's the most wonderful time of the year: Kentuck's annual Studio Artist Exhibition! Each December, our Studio Artists fill our Museum Gallery with their work from the year. These local, full-time artists rent space from Kentuck Art Center for below market value to help them make a living doing what they love. Kentuck’s Studio Artist Program fulfills all facets of our mission statement: perpetuate the arts, engage the community, and empower the artist.

This year, we have six artists participating in our Studio Artist Program: Neel Alexander, Alana Baldwin, Kerry Kennedy, Amy LeePard, Scott McQueen, and Virginia Shirley. We would love for you to see this show in-person, but if you're unable to visit the Museum Gallery right now, take a look at the work on display below.

Neel Alexander

"I believe my art performs best when it subtly blends many styles, influences, and media into something unique for that moment. A lot of my work uses themes of nature and historical popular culture references. The mediums I have been using most are acrylics, paint markers, and spray paint. I also enjoy making sculpture. I usually make those out of sculpey or foam and sometimes adhere them to found objects. My main process starts by writing down ideas throughout the day and later revising them into drawings. Depending on the idea in the drawing, I then choose a medium to start working with. When it all goes well, I finish with a fully realized illustration, painting, or sculpture."

Alana Baldwin

“I operate a small-edition letterpress shop and bindery. I work with themes of cause and effect and see to reconnect readers with the exploratory spirit of youth. In addition, I have a BFA in Graphic Design from Auburn University, an MFA in Book Arts from The University of Alabama, and over 9 years of cumulative professional experience working in various creative environments and industries.”

Kerry Kennedy

Kerry Kennedy’s first love is pottery and sculptural ceramics. She has thrown pottery for over ten years. As a student, Kennedy was deeply interested in sculptural works that fused thrown forms with organic aesthetics. These ideas are always influencing even the most functional shapes of mugs and bowls. Her passion for creative anachronism of the renaissance period takes her to several festivals throughout the nation each year.

Amy LeePard

Amy LeePard is a book artist and letterpress printer who creates one-of-a-kind and limited edition handmade books and prints. Amy received her Master of Fine Arts degree in Book Arts from The University of Alabama in 2016. Her work incorporates printing processes that span the history of print technology from traditional printmaking to experimental processes for letterpress printing to modern giclée printing. As a hand bookbinder and papermaker, Amy has a special interest in historic book structures and paper sculpture.

Scott McQueen

Scott is an accomplished folk artist who was raised in Fayette, Alabama. He fondly recollects times during his childhood when he observed folk artist Jimmy Lee Sudduth create his now-famous mud paintings. Scott is a graduate of Samford University (B.A.), New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary (M.Div) and Luther Rice Seminary (D.Min). Scott is an ordained minister who lives in Nothport, Alabama. He has exhibited in Kentuck's Hotel Indigo Gallery and the Teer Gallery and has been a Kentuck Artist in the Schools for three years. He attends over 20 festivals every calendar year. He is a minister, and author of Reasonable Doubt — A Case for LGBTQ Inclusion in the Institutions of Marriage and Church.

Virginia Shirley

Simple objects and scenes, such as a pear, a child holding a fish, a farmers field, or fresh cut flowers, hold equal appeal for Virginia, who divides her time between homes on Dauphin Island and in Tuscaloosa. Four categories…landscapes and seascapes, still life objects, figures, and abstracted scenes…provide the inspiration for the majority of her paintings. She is known for her flowing, rich use of vibrant color and lush brush strokes, usually with her subjects containing an element of impressionism and often against an abstracted background.

Her award-winning work has been featured in numerous real estate show homes, juried shows, individual gallery exhibitions, and more than a dozen galleries across the South.

Our Annual Studio Artist Exhibition is in Kentuck Art Center’s Museum Gallery until January 28, 2024. We encourage you to visit to see this work in person! See something you're interested in purchasing? Give us a call at 205-758-1257 or email us at kentuck@kentuck.org. Out staff is happy to help! Kentuck is open regular hours—Monday-Friday, 9:30-5:30 and Saturday-Sunday, 12-4.

Kentuck's Holiday Hours 2023:

December 25-January 5th: Closed