The Art Museum of Myrtle Beach Melds Music & Visual Art in New Exhibition

Written by Maxwell Conklin Saturday, 12 November 2011 22:50

Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.- Two of the most expressive of human endeavors – music and the visual arts – join forces in a unique exhibit coming to the Franklin G. Burroughs-Simeon B. Chapin Art Museum of Myrtle Beach through December 30th. "Story, Song and Image: A Collaborative Project of Paintings and Music by Glen Miller and John Fowler", an exhibition designed by John Fowler and Glen Miller, focuses on 10 musicians and singing groups who represent different genres of roots music that are important to South Carolina’s regional musical traditions. The opening reception was held, with entertainment by musicians featured in the exhibit. The musicians and singers represented in "Story, Song and Image" are drawn from different geographical regions throughout the state. The exhibition aspect of the project encompasses the historical and cultural traditions of the genres of music as well as the musicians’ personal stories, which are the subject of the contemporary narrative paintings.

The paintings were derived from conversations with the musicians, the music, their stories and composed in the studio from sketches, notes and photographs taken in their home environments.  The non-traditional paintings are intended to present the musicians as persons that, although representative of a historical tradition, are nonetheless living stories themselves. A CD of the music represented in this exhibit will be playing in the galleries and will also be available for sale in the Museum Shop. Glen Miller, a native of northeast Tennessee, has taught art in South Carolina since 1979. He is currently teaching drawing at Converse College and Furman University.  Miller has a BFA in drawing and painting from East Tennessee University, an MA in Art and Education from The University of South Florida. John Fowler, a storyteller and old-time musician, has been touring professionally throughout the Southeast at festivals, theaters, schools and music camps for over 20 years. His talents stem from family ties to the Southern Appalachian Mountain region. Fowler has performed at venues on both coasts and has co-produced a number of specials for South Carolina ETV.

The Art Museum of Myrtle Beach first opened to the public in June, 1997, but was conceived some 13 years earlier by a small group of Myrtle Beach visionaries - artists, art patrons, business leaders, cultural enthusiasts and other private citizens. The building itself dates to 1924, when it was built by textile industry mogul Eugene Cannon in the Cabana section of Myrtle Beach. It was subsequently sold to Col. Elliot White Springs for use by his family and executives of Springs Industries and re-christened Springmaid Villa. In 1975, the Villa changed hands again and was slated for demolition. A campaign to save Springmaid Villa began, led initially by Waccamaw Arts and Crafts Guild President Gaye Sanders Fisher. The building's survival, however, was contingent on its relocation: a Herculean effort organized by Guild member and Myrtle Beach Councilman Harry Charles, along with his wife, Jane. Relocating the 150-ton structure required two flatbed trucks for three full days, with a team of city employees, utility workers and every member of the Guild working side by side. The Villa was taken to its new home eight miles south, an undeveloped property whose donation by the Myrtle Beach Farms Company, precursor to the Burroughs & Chapin Company, had been negotiated by Harry Charles. Charles was also instrumental in creating the Springmaid Villa Art Museum Corporation, a new non-profit with a board of trustees charged with converting and later managing the property as a public Art Museum. Following a decade-long fundraising effort, the Museum opened its doors in June, 1997. In recognition of the land donation, it was re-named for the founders of Myrtle Beach Farms and became the Franklin G. Burroughs-Simeon B. Chapin Art Museum. Visit the museum's website at ... http://www.myrtlebeachartmuseum.org

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