From a teacher to an artist, Jenny Lucas Mastin said the change was worth it, as two of her works -“Mandrillus Sphinx” and “Oracle” – were selected for Artspace’s juried exhibition, “New Works,” in Raleigh last month.

Mastin, who graduated from Plymouth High School, said it was an honor to have her works selected for the show, but to have one of them sell while the other place third was unexpected.

She is a clay sculptor working as a studio artist in Asheville at the Constance Williams Gallery & Studios in the River Arts District.

According to Mastin, after earning her bachelor’s degree in Art Education from East Carolina University’s School of Art and Design, and her master’s degree in Art Education from Appalachian State University, she wanted to teach art and help others hone their craft.

Although retiring from teaching and becoming a full-time artist was always a gamble she wanted to take, she said it wasn’t until after she took that first step that she was really happy with her decision.

According to Mastin, a call went out to artists across the state to submit at least two images to Artspace, which she submitted and both were selected for the show. She was only one of 33 other artists whose artworks were selected for the show in Raleigh last month.

She was given an Award of Merit for her artwork, Oracle, which placed third.

Her father, Ed Lucas, said she has studied several forms of art in her life and has always reached for more.

“I’m proud of her and hope nothing but the best for her. She has really done fantastic since she left teaching school and started working on her art full time. It’s something she really likes to do and I know she really enjoys every bit of it. Even the long drive to her studio.”

According to Lucas, Mastin drives around 80 miles each way from Valdese to her studio in Asheville.

“She said she couldn’t wait anymore and that it was either going to be now or never,” he said.

He added, since she has created her pieces of artwork, she has received inquiries from art galleries in New York City and other centers for art across the country.

Lucas added his daughter must have inherited her artistic nature from her mother, Betsy Burgess, as she was a writer, having written columns for the Washington Daily News when she was just in high school.

Mastin’s strong fascination with anthropology and art since childhood are just some of her greatest influences, as well as the primal forms and stories of traditional cultures from around the world.

“Each creation I design may be based on a cultural myth, folklore, legend,” she said. “And my objective with each piece is to exhibit a contemporary interpretation and visual narrative of primal creations.”

Mastin said her inspiration comes from her interest in varied cultures throughout the world, as she has studied Egyptian and Aztec cultures, as well as many more over the years. She dedicates herself to her craft and vision of telling a story through her art.

Mastin says of her teaching days, “It was a great career and I had a great time teaching.”

After her kids graduated high school and went off to college, she said she wanted to make the move to pursuing her art on a full time basis.

“Which is part of the reason I wanted to be in Asheville,” she said. “It was difficult at first, whether to take early retirement or not. But once I made it over that hurdle it just seemed easy and like the best decision I had made. Like I was thinking, ‘Why didn’t I do this so long ago.’”

Mastin went to a counseling service for a few weeks to talk to a counselor who did not have a vested interest in her and wanted an unbiased opinion as to what creative outlet she knew to be the one to follow.

“And it’s been a wonderful experience,” she said after going to the River Arts District in Asheville. “I’m with a group of artists in a community of artists, where there’s lots of creative energy and support.”

Mastin made the move to Asheville in March 2006. When she was in the district she joined the River Arts District Arts Association there were 40 active members. Now there are over 140 artists and 21 associate members.

“I get a lot of encouragement and challenged a lot to stretch as an artist,” she said.

Her latest work and activities are her two solo shows. One will be in July at the Constance Williams Gallery, while the other will be at The Gallery of Southwestern Community College in Cherokee in August.

Mastin’s artworks have been on display around North Carolina as well as throughout the United States.

Mastin has participated in various solo and joint shows in the galleries of Appalachian State University, the Burke and Old Rock School Arts Councils of Burke County, the Gray Gallery of East Carolina’s School of Art and Design, Artspace, the Odyssey Center of Ceramic Arts and the Constance Williams Gallery & Studios of Asheville.

She is included on the artists’ registries of “Handmade in America”╩and the “North Carolina Arts Council,” a member of the River District Artists and Asheville Area Arts Council and holds an associate artist membership with the Artspace Gallery in Raleigh. She has participated in national exhibitions since 2007.

To see more of Mastin’s artwork, or to contact her, log onto www.jenluma.com.

Artspace is located at 201 E. Davie St., Raleigh. Email at info@artspacenc.org, www.artspace.org or call (919) 821-2787 for more information.