By By KEVIN SCOTT CUTLER
Lifestyles & Features Editor
Artwork by the Greenville Brushstrokes, which includes members from Beaufort County, is presently displayed at the Turnage Theater in downtown Washington.
The exhibition, titled “All That Jazz,” opened in early June in conjunction with a jazz concert featuring the Steve Creech All Stars, according to Scotty Henley, the theater’s executive director. The artwork will remain on display through the end of this month.
“This is the second in our new series of art exhibitions,” Henley said.
Each exhibition will be on display for a month, utilizing a professional hanging system that was purchased following the historic theater’s first art show, presented in conjunction with its “Lavish Night of Entertainment.”
Sharon Bachman and Holly Cook organized that show and hit upon the idea of purchasing a hanging system that would allow the Turnage to showcase art on a regular basis, Henley said.
“They pulled together the art display, and Sharon felt the space was perfect for displaying artists’ work,” Henley said. “Her husband, Richard, measured the wall space and they researched materials and pricing, and then they gave me a catalog to order the system.”
The Bachmans, Ken and Gila Snow Rowe, Judith and Philip Talbot and Jeffrey and Rima Jakub donated funds for the purchase, Henley said. The hanging system is dedicated in memory of Gila Snow Rowe.
The Greenville Brushstrokes includes approximately 65 artists who meet twice each month at the Greenville Museum of Art, according to Bachman.
“The artists critique each other’s art, share information, put on art exhibitions and generally promote art within the region,” she said.
“All That Jazz” features nearly 30 original pieces by 16 different artists. Participants in the show are Bachman, Cook, Susan Crawford, Janet Dixon, Dodi Groesser, John Groesser, Pete Hickey, Brenda Hughes, Jeffrey Jakub, Dorothy Jenson, Sharon Mazurek, Louise Sharpless, Ray Sobel, Doug Williams, Marilyn Williams and Susan Williams.
The exhibition includes watercolors, oils, acrylics and charcoals. The pieces are available for purchase, and a percentage of each sale will go to the Turnage, Bachman said.
Future exhibitions, according to Henley, will include Riverwalk Gallery in July, Inner Banks Artisans’ Center in August, the eastern region of the N.C. Watercolor Society in September, Long Leaf Gallery in October and an additional Brushstrokes show in November.
“We hope East Carolina University art students will be able to display their senior show here in December,” Henley added.