Jim Calk
Pluff Mud
48×70
Oil
2019
Two basic human needs have been universally expressed throughout human history: the need for connection and the need for expression. Two Georgetown-based artists offer their interpretations of these aspects of humanity in a pair of exhibitions opening later this month at the Franklin G. Burroughs-Simeon B Chapin Art Museum. Betsy Havens | Congregate explores people’s need to gather in a variety of settings from cafes to street markets and in large congregations of faith, through a series of figurative paintings. James Calk | Rhythm & Hues offers abstract landscapes of brilliant colors in oils that offer a visual representation of the rhythms and tonalities of musical compositions.
Congregate opens Thursday, Sept. 19; Rhythm & Hues opens Sept. 26. Both exhibits run through Dec. 15. An opening reception for both exhibits will be from 6:30 – 7:30 p.m. Sept. 26. Admission to the reception and to the Museum is free. Regular gallery hours are from 10 a.m. Tuesday through Saturday and from 1 – 4 p.m. Sundays.
Havens and Calk, who are married to each other, live and paint in Georgetown; both artists work in oils. Havens’ exhibition includes 39 works plus 35 8” x 8” paintings from her Homo Sapiens series; Calk’s exhibition includes 34 works.
Havens grew up in Savannah, where at age 12 she began her study and love of art at the Telfair Museum of Art. Educated at the University of Georgia and the University of South Carolina, she earned a Bachelor of Arts in Design and did post-graduate work in the History of Architecture and Southern Literature.
Havens’ love of the human figure in painting is expressed in her works, which feature street scenes and groups of figures from fishermen to dancers, as well as depictions of historical figures and contemporary Americans. She has received numerous awards for her works which are widely collected by individuals and corporations.
“Drawing and painting have always been my passion,” says Havens. “Always, the human form has mesmerized me, touched my heart. My figures frequently walk away, almost beckoning the viewer to go with them.”
Calk is a native of Saluda, SC, and studied at Newberry (SC) College. As well as a visual artist, he is a classically trained pianist, and music figures largely in his art. His paintings are composed of carefully orchestrated, vibrant bursts of color interspersed with soft, less saturated tones that together form sweeping “landscapes.” Calk says that for each note on the musical scale he has assigned a color; hence, his visual art compositions become symphonies for the eyes. Calk’s work is highly sought after, collected in many states by both private and corporate collectors.
“I paint the fields, rivers, creeks, swamps and the lush vegetation and flora of our region,” Calk says. “In my studio I add, subtract and enhance the abstraction of what I have observed. I try not to paint objects but rather the abbreviations of those objects.”
For further information, call 843-238-2510 or visit www.MyrtleBeachArtMuseum.org.