Wetumpka Wildlife Arts Festival Story by Jennifer Stewart Kornegay It’s said that art imitates life, so it’s no surprise some of the South’s most popular and prolific artists working today depict our region’s flora and fauna and the hunting, fishing and other wildlife sports that connect us to them. Many Southerners live to cast a line for a trophy bass or trout, draw a bow on a big buck and follow trusty dogs through a windswept field, ready to take aim at a covey rise. In response, Southern artists capture the wonder of these landscapes and the thrill of these pursuits in clay, oil, pencil, acrylic, wood, watercolor and more. In celebration of these activities and the artistic expressions that memorialize them, Wetumpka, Alabama, hosted its first Wetumpka Wildlife Arts Festival this fall. While an exhibit featuring Alabama wildlife art called “Arts Gone Wild” was on display at Wetumpka’s Kelly Fitzpatrick Memorial Gallery (nicknamed The Kelly) from September 27-November 19, on November 5, the day long Festival took over a tree-shaded park on the bluffs above the Coosa River that sits on the edge of Wetumpka’s historic (and recently revitalized) downtown. Containing 20 artists and their works, the tent greeting Festival guests at arrival was a riot of color, texture and creativity. Oak leaf hydrangeas danced on a canvas at Vaughn Pursell Spanjer’s booth. Potter Bett McLean added final embellishments to an earthen mug, explaining her sgraffito method. Jim Brown’s detailed prints of flounder, redfish and bream introduced visitors to Gyotaku, a Japanese printing process where he applies ink to fish bodies before pressing them onto soft paper to create the life-like, almost anatomical, images. Timothy Joe’s bright depictions of Alabama birds — barred owls, bald eagles, woodpeckers and swallow-tail kites — looked ready to take wing. And Andrew Lee, renowned for rendering beloved sporting dogs in oil, watercolor and pencil sketches with such skill you can almost see a pointer’s snout twitch, chatted about his love of the hard-working animals with fellow canine lovers. Wood carvings, baskets woven from kudzu vines, jewelry fashioned from seaglass and more filled every corner, with artists happily sharing insight into inspiration and their techniques, and a few even plying their craft for onlookers. Strolling among and around them all was a feast for the more than 5,000 art and wildlife enthusiasts who attended, but this area was only one aspect of the event. Music, food trucks, art projects for kids and animal encounters courtesy of the Alabama Wildlife Federation were also on the agenda, as was a taste of the culinary arts with Birmingham chef Chris Hastings. Admired for his commitment to seasonal and local ingredients in his restaurants, Hastings is also an avid hunter. In several cooking demos throughout the day, he applied his deft touch to wild game, cooking dishes over open fire.
56 | Winter 2023 www.MagnoliaandMoonshine.com
