a tour through roswell`s thriving gallery district

Art
A TOUR
THROUGH
ROSWELL’S
THRIVING
GALLERY
DISTRICT
[ WR ITTEN BY SAR A SHELTON ]
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walk
In her studio nestled in the base-
Slow and Steady
ment of her art gallery, local jewelry artist Judie Raiford dug through the drawers of her newly acquired
workbench. With an excited exclamation, she pulled
out the treasure she has been looking for: a tiny pair
of work pliers.
“I found these in my mom’s garage when I was
younger,” Raiford explained. “I have used them to
make jewelry my whole career.”
Just a few weeks prior, her mother had passed
away, giving an extra weight to the pliers she held in
her hand and different sentimentality to the artistic
jewelry she crafts.
This kind of intimacy is not uncommon in the
burgeoning art district found in the historic area of
downtown Roswell. The artists here are concerned
with creating a community of expression, breaking
down the wall between artist and patron. There are
no stuffy, white box galleries here, no overdressed
curators looking to make a sale. This is an intimate
community of creators eager to share their inspiration and artistic expression with their peers.
The progression of the art community has been a
slow but persistent one. Though some local galleries
date back 30 years, at that time they were few and
far between. Individuals like Jan Gibbons, the now
deceased pioneer artist who convinced the city to
start an arts program some 25 years ago, were influential in starting the steady build of the cultural arts
world, but the real boom in the community did not
begin until about 11 years ago.
“There has always been a great tradition
of support for arts and culture in the city, but the
year 2000 was really a turning point in considering
them to be a thriving part of life,” explained Morgan
Timmis.
Timmis works for the city of Roswell as the
Historic and Cultural Affairs Manager and came
on board in early 2000, just as the community was
taking a renewed interest in the arts. At that time,
the city put into motion a Community Cultural Plan,
surveying the residents of Roswell to find out their
interests in the arts and how to better cater to them.
A
“ the face
of historic Roswell
is changing and art is a huge part of this. I think
it is helping revitalize the area and offering
something to the next generation.”
LAUREN STONE | Ford Smith Fine Arts Gallery
Left to Right:
Galleries along Canton Street
PHOTO COURTESY OF ROB SMITH
Ford Smith Gallery
PHOTO COURTESY OF ROB SMITH
Untitled
PAINTING BY JOHN CLIFTON
PHOTO COURTESY OF PETER BRANDI GALLERY
“Purple Cosmo”
PHOTO COURTESY OF TAYLOR KINZEL GALLERY
“Distant Memory”
PAINTING BY FORD SMITH
PHOTO COURTESY OF FORD SMITH GALLERY
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Roswell Art walk
Fine Arts Gallery. “I think it is helping revitalize the area
and offering something to the next generation.”
Breaking down that fourth wall between creator
and patron, artists are introducing a more contemporary,
accessible type of art, and variety is the defining characteristic. Within a 5-mile radius, you can find everything
from photography to sculpture and jewelry to mixed media
art. This adds to the draw of the area, with galleries both
large and small, contemporary and traditional sharing
street space to create a community of art.
The results of the survey ultimately led to founding the
city’s first Cultural Arts Board.
“We discovered with that survey that the community
really cares about the arts and wants to nurture them and
see them grow here in our area,” Timmis said. “Volunteers
on our Cultural Arts Board are working with the city to see
this happen.”
The board meets regularly to come up with new and
innovative ways to put Roswell on the map, not just as a
quaint, historic district but also a destination for culture
and arts.
“In a community of our size, to have so many incredible groups is a magnificent statement about our rich
history and progressive arts and cultural community,”
said Sharon Moskowitz, member and former chair of the
Cultural Arts Board.
Now the city and its artists are working together to
grow and revitalize the community into an arts district.
With monthly festivals and increased appeal from tourists, the city of Roswell is delivering a new kind of artistic
destination, one that focuses on the development of a
community as a whole.
“The face of historic Roswell is changing and art is a
huge part of this,” stated Lauren Stone at The Ford Smith
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A Variety of Artistic Venues
The largest art centers in the city are born out of the Culture and Arts department of the city of Roswell. Located
on Woodstock Road, the Roswell Visual Arts Center is the
studio leading the brigade to build Roswell into a vibrant
art community. Now in its 19th year in existence, the Visual
Arts Center was the first facility built in the metro Atlanta
area specifically dedicated to the creation and promotion of the visual arts. The center boasts more than 10
rotating exhibitions a year as well as available classrooms
for beginner to advanced level artists.
After experiencing a wave of growth over the last
12 years, the center branched out to include the Roswell
Arts Center West in 2003, a neighboring facility dedicated solely to the production and display of the ceramic
arts. The Arts Center West consists of specialized space
designed to accommodate the creation of ceramic arts.
Featuring studio space for instruction and creation in
sculpting, pottery and glaze, the center also features a
gallery space to exhibit the work created by students and
members of the Roswell Clay Collective.
While facilities like these focus on instruction to
nurture and develop new artists in the community, galleries like the Ann Jackson Gallery on Canton Street offer
a glimpse into the history and diversity of the Roswell art
world. Opened by Jackson in 1971, this was the first gallery in the historic downtown district and proved to be
Clockwise from
top left:
“The Dancer”
PAINTING BY GABALAIVIE
PHOTO COURTESY OF
PETER BRANDI GALLERY
“A Prayer for a Child”
PAINTING BY DR. SEUSS
PHOTO COURTESY OF
ANN JACKSON GALLERY
“Summer Jewels”
PAINTING BY FORD SMITH
PHOTO COURTESY OF
FORD SMITH GALLERY
Roswell Art walk
Raiford Gallery
PHOTO COURTESY OF RAIFORD GALLERY
instrumental in putting Roswell on the map as an art destination. Now run by
Jackson’s daughters and fellow artists Valerie and Victoria, the gallery prominently features paintings by Jackson family members and other local artists.
“We used word of mouth as our best advertiser,” artist and family member
Victoria Jackson said. “Our gallery really helped start the conversation about
art in the area.”
The most unique topic of that art conversation for the gallery is an in-depth
display of artwork by renowned author and illustrator Dr. Seuss. The Ann Jackson
Gallery is the only one in Georgia to display and sell Seuss’ work and proudly features his drawings, paintings and sculptures throughout their two-story space.
Sharing street space with the Ann Jackson Gallery is the more traditional
Peter Brandi Gallery. Open 29 years now, this gallery is right behind the Jackson
family in longevity in the area. Brandi gathers work from local artists, compiling a
more classical collection for his gallery, which features mostly decorative oil paintings. New work arrives almost weekly so the selection is always changing.
Work from Brandi’s gallery is reaching outside the parameters of Roswell; all
the artwork from the Ritz-Carlton in Buckhead was chosen from the Peter Brandi
Gallery. “This was huge for us and for Roswell,” said staffer Lisa Nicholson. “It
really helps point tourists to Roswell as an arts and culture destination.”
Nestled just across the street is a more contemporary space housing the
work of local artist Ford Smith. Smith opened his gallery seven years ago to
appeal to the next generation of art collectors in the area. As an abstract expressionist artist, he features light as a centerpiece to most of his paintings. Smith
is arguably the most recognizable name to come out of Roswell, with his work
being shown internationally for 10 years now. Though nearly all of the art at his
gallery is original from the artist himself, he occasionally brings in work from his
international peers to offer a new flavor to the Roswell art community.
Adjacent to Ford Smith is the Taylor Kinzel Gallery, a smaller space housing
a variety of work. From jewelry and pottery to paintings and photography, Kinzel’s
space offers art for any patron. In almost its eighth year of existence, the gallery
houses pieces from both local and regional artists. All the work at Kinzel’s gallery is unique, original art selected to bring a sense of artistic awareness to the
historic district. “There is a charm about this area,” Mary Kinzel said. “And that
makes it a great place to showcase local art as well as artists of the South.”
Stepping outside the Square
Those willing to venture slightly outside of Roswell Square will find two of the
most unique gallery experiences in the area. Synergy Fine Art is co-owned by
local artists Barbara Rush and Shannon Schneider. They share their space with
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Roswell Art walk
U P C O M I N G A R T E V E N T S I N R O S W E LL
ALIVE AFTER FIVE: Monthly event held every third Thursday of the month through October from 5 to 9 p.m. in downtown Roswell.
Shops, restaurants and galleries open their doors and offer discounts to those attending the street festival. www.aliveafterfiveroswell.com
GALLERYGOROUND: A program of monthly rotating arts exhibits presented in the lobby of the Roswell Visual Arts Center. www.roswellgov.com
pARTners Power Lunch: A lunch sponsored by the Cultural Arts Board for local artists and community leaders to meet together and discuss the arts
and culture world of Roswell. Open to the public at a $10 charge. www.roswellgov.com
ROSWELL CLAY COLLECTIVE AND ROSWELL VISUAL ARTS CENTER: Weekly classes are held at both the Visual Arts Center and Roswell Arts Center
West. Classes range from beginner to advanced level artists and cover most types of artistic form. www.roswellclaycollective.com;
www.roswellgov.com
ROSWELL ARTS FESTIVAL: The 45th annual Roswell Arts Festival will be held Sept. 18 and 19 at the Roswell Town Square. The festival features art
vendors, local performers and children’s art activities, and raises funds for the Roswell Visual Arts Center and other Roswell organizations.
www.roswellartsfestival.com
three other artists, Sherri Martin, Christine Kazmier
and Eugenia Gurevich, with each creator offering a
different style of expression under one roof.
From Rush’s more contemporary to Schneider’s
more impressionistic style to Gurevich’s more political expression, this is perhaps the most diversity to
be found under one roof. The most unique feature
of the gallery is that it doubles as studio space for
resident artists. Though you might go to see the art
display, you will find yourself a part of the creative
process as surrounding artists continue to paint as
customers peruse.
“Art is very intimate,” Schneider explained. “I
think it’s important for people to connect with the
artist, to get something personal from the experience and to understand the story in the creation of
the work.”
This emphasis on the story behind the creation
of art spreads down Canton Street to Raiford Galleries. Built and operated by artist Judie Raiford for
more than 14 years, this gallery boasts the widest
variety of artistic expression in the area. In addition
to her originally handcrafted jewelry, Raiford selects
contemporary arts, crafts, furniture and even household items to display and sell in her space.
“I really think art should be everywhere in the
home,” she said. “I don’t want anything mass produced — there is no story there. I want to see the
story and the person behind the art I have, down to
the cups I drink out of or the necklace I [wear].”
This sense of personal connection is indicative of the vibe in Roswell’s art district. The creative
world here is accessible, as are artists of professional
caliber without the air of stuffy professionalism about
them. Together, they are putting the city on the map
and bursting at the seams as their community continues to move toward a greater revitalization of the
art district.
“There’s no doubt about it, we are growing,”
Barbara Rush said. “There are artists in every nook
and cranny of historic Roswell. They are painting
in their studios, in their homes, in restaurants and
antique shops. There is art everywhere here. You
just have to come and see.” PN
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