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.

Festival guests were treated to live-action art too, when Oxford, Mississippi’s famed Wildrose Kennels showcased the Wildrose Way, a development and training method that yields sought-after sporting dogs. British labs, transformed from rambunctious, unruly animals to perfectly behaved outdoor adventure companions, demonstrated the results of Wildrose’s process, retrieving and releasing on whistle command to the delight of the crowds.

Despite all the event’s offerings, they were not the only attraction. Wetumpka itself brought its own appeal. The Festival came on the heels of an exciting two years in the little city. In July 2020, Wetumpka found out it had beat more than 2,600 other small towns to be selected by popular renovation experts Ben and Erin Napier for a “makeover” to be chronicled in their “Hometown Takeover” television show. The couple gave the city’s downtown and historic district a facelift over six episodes that aired on HGTV starting in May 2021. The effort had a ripple effect, energizing other businesses to open or renovate. In the wake of the show airing, the revived and refreshed shops, parks, eateries and more, combined with the city’s natural beauty and hospitality, have drawn tourists by the thousands from all over the globe.

Wetumpka natives have been just as thrilled by the city’s recent progress, folks like artist Jeanie Edwards, who had a booth at the Festival and grew up in Wetumpka but now lives and works in Highlands, North Carolina, where she owns a gallery that exhibits her bold, sometimes whimsical, animal portraits. “It’s definitely not the town I grew up in, which is not a bad thing,” she says. “I think that the growth that Wetumpka has experienced in the last couple of years is crazy impressive. I love to see how it’s grown and how it is slated to continue to grow into the future.”

Keeping that momentum going downtown and shining a spotlight on The Kelly (the small but mighty museum dedicated to internationally acclaimed Wetumpka artist Kelly Fitzpatrick), is one reason event founders the Smoot Harris family and the City of Wetumpka decided to put the Festival on. “The main purpose of the event was to celebrate arts and wildlife and bring people to downtown Wetumpka,” says The Kelly’s executive director Jennifer Eifert.

All involved agree the inaugural Wetumpka Wildlife Arts Festival was a success, so a date has already been set for next year, which excites artists like Edwards, who stresses how wildlife art feeds our collective craving to better understand the natural world. “Everything that happened in 2020 forced us to get outside and experience wildlife and nature again. We went camping. We went hiking. We went for walks, and I believe as a human race, we discovered outside once again,” she says, “I absolutely would love to see more events like this not only because I’m a wildlife artist, but because why wouldn’t we want to celebrate nature and all of its beauty and glory.”

SAVE THE DATE Mark your calendars for November 11, 2023, the next Wetumpka Wildlife Arts Festival. In the meantime, watch The Kelly on social media @thekellyfitzpatrick or visit thekelly.org for details.

Music, food trucks, art projects for kids and animal encounters courtesy of the Alabama Wildlife Federation were all things to enjoy at the festival. There were more than 5,000 art and wildlife enthusiasts who attended.

Festival guests were treated to live-action art too, when Oxford, Mississippi’s famed Wildrose Kennels showcased the Wildrose Way, a development and training method that yields sought-after sporting dogs. Birmingham chef Chris Hastings, admired for his commitment to seasonal and local ingredients in his restaurants, is an avid hunter and applied his deft touch to wild game, cooking dishes over open fire.

Chip North, Kentucky Architect

Story by Kristina Hendrix

From curtsy-inducing grand manors to earnest and joyful vernacular styles, Chip North, of North{dwell} Fine Residences, in Louisville, Kentucky, creates honest and reverential reinterpretations of early southern Architecture styles.

Principal Designer and Owner, North’s technical agility forms a strong base for his architectural stories that include and embrace the tricky elements of Southern culture. In expressions of precise, classical theory, his expertise and focused execution from form-to-form is evident in every project; projects that not only honor architectural fundamentals but also bring a “bon vivant” inclusivity to their vision. He embraces the technological advances that have allowed more room for his firm to focus on issues like sustainability and a reduced environmental footprint. He creates with a vision that is informed through a profound understanding of regional history, and an eye for the future.

As an architecture student, Chip studied at the Insituto di Palazzo Rucellai, in Florence, Italy, in an immersive architectural program hosted by Roger Williams University in Rhode Island, where he later received a degree in architecture, one of two he attained. Another graduate program took him to London, where he studied urban planning in concert with the Mayor of London’s office, a key component in his commitment to not only building healthy and thriving communities, but restoring neglected ones as well.

The library of knowledge North has acquired through his studies at home and abroad, along with his work experience in Historic Preservation and Restoration, and the “New Old House” movement, shows a maturity not often seen in young architectural careers. His collaborations marry the vision of historical integrity with the need to build for the times in which we live and the specific needs of his clients. His work is informed with a deep appreciation of architectural detail no matter if it is intricate and grand, or beautifully simple. His firm doesn’t compromise in their commitment to build responsibly, with historically accurate re-imagining and gently-placed new construction. This suggests Chip might have a bit of the purist in him.

It is remarkable how North’s artistry strikes an emotional punch as well. One of his project photos features a room that is reminiscent of a smoldering, sherry-sipping duchess dressed in deep, velvety red. Another dwelling, straight out of a Tibetan forest monastery, is a guru siren’s call, so peaceful it makes you yearn to go inside, do a little yoga, have some tea, and never, ever leave; Each space deeply reflective of the inhabitants. You don’t have to ask him to share his philosophy, nor the influence that drives his

passion …his work shows you everything you need to know without ever saying a word. But I am going to ask him anyway.

Married and a father of two, photos with his wife and their two young children are, well, joyous…like his designs. I call Chip on a Tuesday morning and am immediately charmed. He has an open, easy-going manner and we launch right into his studies overseas, in Florence, Italy.

“Studying architecture in Italy helped my work immensely. The lesson Italy off ers, I think, for any student of the arts, is durability…and I didn’t fully grasp what this meant until I was actually there seeing the Pantheon, or the Duomo in Florence. All of these examples are sublime in person, but the reality is the endurance, the strength of the design and the actual construction - it’s just awe-inspiring. To recognize that longevity, but to also recognize those concepts of composition, shadow, color still in play within our modern age is incredible.”

While in Italy, he and his fellow students studied and spent a great deal of time in Leon Battista Alberti’s 15th century Palazzo Rucellai.

He recalls, amused, “We were occupying these incredible Renaissance rooms, untouched since the 16th century, studying underneath classical frescoed ceilings, but sitting in modern plastic classroom chairs. It was surreal.”

On trips to Spain with his wife, Chip introduced her to the work of Antoni Gaudí and his sui generis style.

“I really love that, though she has never studied art or design, she could appreciate and love the beauty within the architecture as much as I do. There is a universality to architecture; humans have always responded to it and vice versa.”

Growing up in Tampa, Florida, North lived in a 100+ year old house in Hyde Park, a nationally recognized historic district. His family’s history in Florida stretches back 7 generations, so this sense of Florida & Southern history permeates his work. North also attributes his early love of building and design to his parents and older sister, all creative people.

“Fortunately, I had a family who exposed me to art, design, architecture, all of those things, as a young child…I was really interested in history and building early on. We would explore old houses together, and they would take me with them to antique shops where we would dig around and fi nd cool old stuff . I’ve just always appreciated how well-crafted old things are - houses included.”

North mentions his love of the Mediterranean Revival, prevalent in South Florida with its iconic red clay tiles, the plaster and stucco walls, a genre created by Addison Mizner, one of the foremost domestic architects of the early 20th century. He has great admiration for him, someone he calls “quite a character.”

“During the 1920’s, Mizner changed the look of Florida, even to this day. His building styles were very highly detailed, but designed and constructed in a way that responded to their coastal environment and the salty humid air. So many of his great homes have survived several hurricanes in fact - and that style just became so iconic and instantly recognizable.”

Closing up our interview was hard; there were so many more questions I wanted to ask him, but Chip North has very little time these days. I did ask him one more thing: how has fatherhood changed his workstyle?

“Early days, just really early days,” he laughed. “I used to be a nightowl, but not anymore. I’ve adjusted to brighter mornings.”

Shown are photos of Chip North’s projects provided by the architect.

Chattahoochee River along the Phenix City Riverwalk

The Longest Urban Whitewater Course in the World - The Only Dual State Zip Lines - 10 Obstacle Multi-level Aerial Adventure - Treetop Zip Course - 18-hole Riverfront Disc Golf Course - 20 Miles of Scenic Riverwalk - Guided Fly Fishing You 'll be Hooked Winter 2023 | 65