November Issue 2000
Smith-Killian Fine Art Opens in Charleston's French Quarter
A new gallery featuring familiar artists debuts
in Nov. as Smith-Killian Fine Art greets the public for the first
time. Hume Killian, owner of the Wells Gallery, and Betty Anglin
Smith, long-time artist at the Wells Gallery have partnered to
form a new gallery to be named Smith-Killian Fine Art. The gallery,
scheduled to open mid-Nov., will be located at 9 Queen Street,
on the corner of Queen and State Streets, with a grand opening
reception on Fri., Nov. 24 from 5:30 - 8:30pm, in the heart of
the prestigious French Quarter gallery district. Smith-Killian
Fine Art is Charleston's new gallery of contemporary realism.
Under the management of Hume Killian, Smith-Killian Fine Art will
feature the work of painters Betty Anglin Smith, Jennifer Lynn
Smith, Shannon Smith, and photographer Tripp Smith.
Among the founding artists in the Wells Gallery is Betty Anglin
Smith, an artist who has been residing and painting in Charleston
for over twenty years. Smith is well known for her large scale,
vibrant, expressionistic oil paintings of the Lowcountry landscape.
Her work has been recognized nationally with one person gallery
exhibits in New York, San Francisco, Washington, DC, Carmel, and
Martha's Vineyard. She has exhibited in various museum exhibits
across the country, and locally she has shown at both the Columbia
Museum of Art and the Gibbes Museum of Art. Among her collectors
are the Mayor's office, City of Charleston, the American Embassies
to Uruguay and Barbados; Walt Disney World; Johnson & Johnson;
IBM; Glaxo; Blount, Inc.; and Southern Progress.
In addition to representing Betty Anglin Smith, Smith-Killian
Fine Art will showcase a second generation of artists in the Smith
family Jennifer, Shannon, and Tripp Smith are 28-year-old triplets,
and each has pursued a degree and career in the arts.
Jennifer and Shannon Smith, identical twins, both received their
BFA in Studio Art from Clemson University in l994. Since then,
both have garnered many accolades from the art community.
As a student at Clemson, Jennifer received the Citation of Outstanding
Achievement from the Department of Visual Arts. Since graduation
she has won awards in the NBSC Oil Painters Invitational, which
is an annual statewide exhibition. She has also been an award-winner
nearly every year with the Piccolo Spoleto Outdoor Art Exhibit,
winning first place this year. Her style of painting is bold and
direct, and her architectural and landscape subject matter is
reminiscent of Edward Hopper and Fairfield Potter. Her work is
also shown in galleries in Richmond, Virginia and Edgartown, Massachusetts.
Although all the Smith painters are strong colorists, Shannon
Smith's work is perhaps better known for her pursuit of light
and the juxtaposition of dramatic darks and subdued grey tones.
Her subjects range from landscape, figure and still life, with
the influence of John Singer Sargent being quite evident After
graduation Shannon received a scholarship to the Scottsdale Artists
School by winning first place in oil painting in the exhibit entitled,
The Best and Brightest. Her work has been recognized by
and is in the collection of the Clemson University Foundation
and the Bowie Art Museum at Erskine College.
To broaden the scope of the gallery, Smith-Killian Fine Art will
also show the photography of Tripp Smith, the triplet brother
of the family. Tripp is a 1994 USC graduate with a degree in media
arts and works in Charleston as a freelance photographer. His
work has been featured in Charleston Magazine, Professional
Builder, Southern Living, The Oxford American, and the Smithsonian
Magazine. Much of Tripp's freelance work is architectural,
however, as a preservationist, Tripp's emphasis in the gallery
will be on showing immense landscapes and intimate portrayals
of nature. His photography is small, medium and large format,
and he works in both black and white and color.
For more info check our SC Commercial Gallery listings or call
(843)853-0708 or visit their website at (http://www.smithkillian.com).
Mailing Address: Carolina Arts, P.O. Drawer
427, Bonneau, SC 29431
Telephone, Answering Machine and FAX: 843/825-3408
E-Mail: carolinart@aol.com
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