Alabama's Art Colony

    The artists feel the cool Lake Martin breeze as it blows into the
screened porch of the cabin along the shore. Some of them face out toward the water, using its natural landscape as their inspiration.
    Others have their backs to it allowing the ideas in their heads to pour
out onto the canvas. For these artists, it is all about the surroundings,
the camaraderie, the experience. For a week along the shores of Lake
Martin, they are allowed to immerse themselves in their work with no
distractions and it is for that reason that the Sarah Carlisle Towery Art
Colony continues to succeed and grow.
Started as an 80th birthday celebration for Sarah Carlisle Towery,
friends were invited to enjoy the Lake Martin atmosphere, all the
while allowing their creative side to
emerge. What was then ‘by invitation
only’ has now grown into a voluntary
community of adult artisans trying to
escape, if only briefly, from the rigors of
the everyday grind. Some of the artists
are retired, some are taking a mini-break
from their eight-to-five jobs, others are
taking a much needed vacation from
motherhood or fatherhood – in any case,
the artists flock to Lake Martin once a
year to take advantage of the natural
inspiration that lies around them.“The real strength of the program lies
in the frank discussions that happen during one on one conversations,” Kyle Braund of Dadeville said, “Getting to see how people are doing their work,
learning from them and getting tips, it’s all a huge asset to the program.”
Braund, an Auburn University professor from 1976 through 1999, has attended
two of the workshops that the colony has offered since its inception.
“The first year I drove back and forth
from StillWaters, but this year I took
advantage of the accommodations
offered by Children’s Harbor and was
really able to use it as a form of retreat
and be totally immersed in the experience.”
Braund also said that the instructors of
the program drew him back to this year’s
colony. Hugh Williams, an Alumni Professor Emeritus of Arts at Auburn University, whose works can currently
be seen at the Columbus Museum of Art, and Randy Moberg, a well-known oil
painter from Fairhope whose works can be seen in J. Alexander’s restaurants
around the country, were recruited to be the instructors for this year’s session.
    

    Each conducted individual workshops
throughout the week and students could
choose which group they would like to
be in. Braund, who chose to be in Hugh
Williams’ workshops, had heard of
Williams through reputation and was
honored to be able to interact with him on an artist-to-artist level. The Sarah Carlisle Towery Art Colony is a colony that is based on several different levels of experience and being able to move at your own pace is key. Artists are not only paying for instruction, they are paying for the atmosphere, the one-on-one conversations, the vacation-like serenity that Lake Martin offers – and after doing some research on art colonies, it’s easy to see they are getting one heck of a bargain.

     “Sunday through Thursday worth of accommodations as well as instructions, meals and socials only costs about $450,” Lynn Spraggins, administrator of the colony, said. “Anyone who wants to sign up can. They can just call the colony and request a brochure to find out more
information.” Spraggins, who has helped the colony for several years, seemed very impressed with this year’s turnout. “We had 15 artists in each workshop. At the end of
the week, they were allowed to submit three pieces to showcase in the art exhibition.”

     In addition to the exhibit, a reception and viewing is held in the artists’ honor that allows the public to come in and possibly purchase the pieces of work. This year’s viewing was held at the Betty Carol Graham Technology Center in Alexander City where several pieces of artwork were purchased. The Sarah Carlisle Towery Art Colony does
get first pick though and the pieces are chosen for them by an outsider. The colony brings in an independent judge to ‘place’ the paintings and the top two picks
are kept for the colony’s permanent collection which can be seen at the Alexander City Board of Education office.

Linda Goslin, president of the Sarah Towery Art Colony, said that advertising for the colony didn’t really start until this year. “For awhile now, it has really been
word-of-mouth,” Goslin said. “We have just started putting an ad in Artists Magazine.” As for the artists, some of them sold several pieces at the exhibit this year and
feel like the colony was a great success.

Some of them will continue to attend the colony every year, and some look for format
changes and instructors to draw them in. Whatever the format, Lake Martin’s
Sarah Carlisle Towery Art Colony continues to represent the best of the arts in
Alabama and should continue to grow and flourish for many years to come.