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Hub Quick Hits: Beaufort benches, Spartanburg hotel art

Twofer Tuesday? Twofer Tuesday. Let's go.

  • BEAUFORT–The city's Cultural District Advisory Board began rolling out "art benches" throughout the district in 2019, giving good-looking places to soak in surroundings to those enjoying scenic Lowcountry charm. Just days ago, the city unveiled five more benches, bringing to 17 the number "now or soon [to] be installed." (Post & Courier Hilton Head, subscription may be required to view).
  • SPARTANBURG–In Spartanburg's cultural district, one hotel has made itself a destination for visual art lovers. Art from The Johnson Collection adorns the walls, nooks, and crannies of the AC Hotel Spartanburg, and staff receive regular training on to be ad hoc docents. Might be time for a trip to Spartanburg, dear reader. Read the story for a list of artists represented at publication time. (Greenville Journal)

Jason Rapp

Landmark exhibition of Southern women artists coming to the Upstate

[caption id="attachment_45117" align="aligncenter" width="600"]Soft color oil painting of women packing peaches in 1938. Wenonah Bell. Peach Packing, Spartanburg County. 1938. 38 1/8 x 48 1/8 inches. Oil on canvas.[/caption]

The critically acclaimed, nationally touring exhibition Central to Their Lives: Southern Women Artists in the Johnson Collection will be on view at The Johnson Collection in Spartanburg starting next month.

The exhibition will run from Sept. 7, 2020 to Dec. 18 at Wofford College. Spanning the decades between the late 1890s and early 1960s, Central to Their Lives examines the particularly complex challenges Southern women artists confronted in a traditionally conservative region during a period in which women’s social, cultural, and political roles were being redefined and reinterpreted. After opening at the Georgia Museum of Art, Athens, the exhibition traveled to the Mississippi Museum of Art (Jackson), the Huntington Museum of Art (West Virginia), the Dixon Gallery and Gardens (Memphis), and the Gibbes Museum of Art in Charleston. The Rosalind Sallenger Richardson Center for the Arts at Wofford College in Spartanburg—the Johnson Collection’s hometown—is the fifth stop on the exhibition’s six-state, three-year tour. Among the works on view, several are of local interest. Wenonah Bell’s Peach Packing, Spartanburg County captures the importance of women to South Carolina’s thriving peach industry during the 1930s and 1940s, and works by Spartanburg natives Margaret Law, Josephine Couper, and Blondelle Malone speak to the artists’ indelible legacy in their hometown and beyond.
Rosalind Sallenger Richardson Center for the Arts is open to the public from Tuesday to Friday from 1-5 p.m. Please check the museum and gallery’s web page prior to your visit to review the latest campus health protocols. Free.

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2020 ‘Voices in American Art’ speaker announced

Spartanburg, Wofford to welcome Dr. Evie Terrono


Dr. Evie Terrono, professor of art history and affiliate faculty in women’s studies at Randolph-Macon College in Ashland, Virginia, will deliver the keynote address at the seventh annual Voices in American Art lecture Thursday, Feb. 13, 2020. The year 2020 marks important political and cultural milestones in the history of the United States, including the ratification of the passage of the Nineteenth Amendment guaranteeing women's constitutional right to vote as well as the two-hundredth anniversary of Susan B. Anthony's birth in 1820. A highly-regarded scholar on understandings of gender, race, and politics, Dr. Terrono has titled her upcoming lecture "Creativity, Collaborations, and Communal Uplift: The Careers of Southern Women Artists." You can read more about Dr. Terrono here. The event, which is open to the public without charge, will take place in the Jerome Johnson Richardson Theatre at Wofford College's Rosalind Sallenger Richardson Center for the Arts at 7 p.m. on Feb. 20.
Established in 2014, Voices in American Art brings distinguished arts leaders from important national institutions to Spartanburg for annual presentations. Previous VIAA speakers include Ruth Erickson, Mannion Family Curator at The Institute of Contemporary Art/BostonSylvia Yount, Lawrence A. Fleischman Curator in Charge of the American Wing at the Metropolitan Museum of Art (2017); Jane Panetta, associate curator at the Whitney Museum of American Art, and Jan Postma, a Spartanburg native and chief financial officer of the Museum of Modern Art (2016); Elizabeth Pochoda, editor of The Magazine Antiques (2015); and Sarah Cash, associate curator of American and British paintings at the National Gallery of Art and former Bechhoefer Curator of American Art at the Corcoran Gallery of Art (2014).

The Johnson Collection seeks communications specialist

The Johnson Collection seeks an energetic, creative Communications Specialist to manage TJC’s public profile including press relations, website content, social media, special events, and various publications. Qualified candidates should submit letter of interest, resumé, and two writing samples to Sarah Tignor, stignor@johnsondevelopment.net or: The Johnson Collection 100 Dunbar Street, Suite 203 Spartanburg, SC 29306

Company Information

Located in Spartanburg, South Carolina, the Johnson Collection offers an extensive survey of artistic activity in the American South from the late eighteenth century to the present day. The Johnson family is committed to creating a collection which captures and illuminates the rich history and diverse cultures of the region. By making masterworks from its holdings available for critical exhibitions and academic research, the collection hopes to advance interest in the dynamic role that the art of the South plays in the larger context of American art and to contribute to the canon of art historical literature. The collection also seeks to enrich its local community by inviting the public to interact with these inspiring works of art. For more information about the collection, please visit www.thejohnsoncollection.org.

Essential Job Qualifications

  • Four-year college degree in English, art history, journalism, or related field.
  • Prior work experience preferred in art, non-profit, journalism, or related field.
  • Excellent writing ability, as well as outstanding editing and proofreading skills.
  • Expertise in managing website content maintenance systems and social media platforms.
  • Experience developing and implementing collaborative projects with cross-institutional teams and through community outreach.
  • Congenial nature with an innate sense of hospitality and welcome.
  •  Strong Microsoft Office Suite and Windows knowledge; Adobe Creative Suite familiarity preferred; comfortable with basic digital photography; familiarity with collection management or parallel inventory software is a plus.

Additional Job Qualifications

  • Authentic, demonstrable interest in the arts and community engagement on both a large and small scale.
  • Engaging verbal communicator, able to build interest in and enthusiasm for the collection, its exhibitions, and programs.
  • Ability to thrive in a dynamic, cooperative environment for creation and implementation of projects; equally comfortable in a leadership role or as a team member.
  • Critical thinking skills that embrace innovative approaches to advance the regional, national, and global reputation of TJC as a premier collection of fine art related to the American South.
  • Excellent listening skills, comfortable receiving input from many sources; able to strategize by analyzing and formulating disparate information into a sound, well-organized plan.
  • Strong work ethic and highly-developed organizational and strategic planning skills; ability to independently manage multiple projects, attend to multiple details, and meet deadlines while supporting other collection projects and priorities.
  • Professional agility and sensitivity for working with diverse personalities and situations; tactful and respectful of others’ concerns; able to reach objectives when barriers arise by developing creative alternatives.
Additional job description can be found at www.thejohnsoncollection.org/opportunities.

Equal Employment Opportunity

The Company is committed to diversity and equal opportunity employment. The Company does not discriminate on the basis of race, creed, color, ethnicity, national origin, religion, sex, pregnancy (including medical needs due to pregnancy, child birth or related medical conditions), sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, age, disability, genetic information, veteran status, military obligations, or marital status. This policy applies to all areas of employment, including employment status and opportunities such as hiring, internal promotions, training, opportunities for advancement, and termination and applies to all Company employees and applicants.

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Tuning Up: Arts job at SCAC, arts ed, and more

Good morning!  "Tuning Up" is a morning post series where The Hub delivers curated, quick-hit arts stories of interest to readers. Sometimes there will be one story, sometimes there will be several. Get in tune now, and have a masterpiece of a day. And now, in no particular order...


We're hiring... but not for long! The deadline to apply for the SCAC's community arts coordinator position is coming to a close soon. The deadline is Tuesday, March 19. Cool story, Spartan-bros. Chapman Cultural Center is celebrating Youth Art Month. There's a reception TODAY at CCC from 4-7 p.m. To highlight the importance of arts education, they put a local spin on the research results from the Gallup Student Poll (conducted in arts-rich South Carolina schools) that the SCAC released last month. Johnsons donate to IAAM Susu and George Dean Johnson, Jr. of the Johnson Collection Gallery in Spartanburg are helping to create additional cultural offerings in South Carolina by pledging a $1 million gift toward the creation of the International African American Museum in Charleston. Governor's School announces 'Grand Jete' winners The first annual Grand Jeté student dance competition, hosted by the S.C. Governor’s School for the Arts and Humanities, featured 47 dancers, ages 10-19, from eight dance schools across the state, including one independent dancer. Here's who came away with prizes.

Tuning Up: HBCU artists + Florence arts grants + go for Baroque

Good morning!  "Tuning Up" is a morning post series where The Hub delivers curated, quick-hit arts stories of interest to readers. Sometimes there will be one story, sometimes there will be several. Get in tune now, and have a masterpiece of a day. And now, in no particular order...


Twiggs curates TJC Gallery exhibition on HBCU artists. The recipient of virtually every major arts award South Carolina offers is back in the spotlight with a new exhibition in Spartanburg that coincides quite nicely with Black History Month. “Elevation from Within: The Study of Art at Historically Black Colleges and Universities,” opens tomorrow and runs through May 10. Admission varies; More info here. Grant opportunity for Florence County artists and arts organizations. From the Florence Regional Arts Alliance: apply now for grants from the FRAA's Quarterly Grants Program for Organizations & Individual Artists. It's designed to provide support for a wide variety of quality arts projects, as well as for professional development opportunities for artists and arts administrators. Organizations must be based in Florence County with a Florence County mailing address and be registered charitable organizations with federal non-profit status. Individual artists must be practicing artists in dance, literature, music, theatre or the visual arts and have a Florence County mailing address. Individual artists must be over the age of 18 at the time of application. Application deadline is May 15. Go for Baroque. (It's obligatory, and we're not sorry. - Ed.) And we're back in Spartanburg as Wofford College celebrates the visual art and music of the European Baroque period of the 17th and 18th centuries with a special exhibition, a concert of music from the period and presentations about the exhibit. (Story from GoUpstate.com) And finally... Columbia TV station WLTX looked at the arts in South Carolina with three #SCArtists during a Facebook Live event last night.

Johnson Collection announces 2019 Voices in American Art speaker

The Johnson Collection announced yesterday that Dr. Tuliza Fleming, Curator of American Art at the National Museum of African American History and Culture (NMAAHC), Smithsonian Institution, as the 2019 Voices in American Art distinguished speaker. The sixth annual edition of the educational series is scheduled for 7 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 28, and will be held at Chapman Cultural Center in downtown Spartanburg. As always, the public is invited to attend the free lecture; no reservations are required. Dr. Fleming received her MA and PhD in American art history from the University of Maryland, College Park (1997 and 2007) and her BA from Spelman College (1994). During her tenure at the NMAAHC, she worked to build the museum’s foundational American art collection, and supervised the creation of a collection-based multi-media interactive presentation. She also co-curated the traveling exhibition Ain’t Nothing Like the Real Thing: How the Apollo Theater Shaped American Entertainment, curated Clementine Hunter: Life on Melrose Plantation, and served as the lead curator for the museum’s inaugural exhibition Visual Art and the American Experience. Formerly, Dr. Fleming served in the position of Associate Curator and head of the Department of American Art at the Dayton Art Institute in Dayton, Ohio. Since 1996, Dr. Fleming has curated over twenty exhibitions and worked and/or consulted for a variety of museums and cultural institutions. Her publications include, “Visual Art and the American Experience: Creating an Art Gallery in a History and Culture Museum,” Art and Public History: Approaches, Opportunities, and Challenges (Rowan and Littlefield, 2017); “Cover Stories: The Fusion of Art and Literature During the Harlem Renaissance,” Dream a World Anew: The African American Experience and the Shaping of America (Smithsonian Books, 2016); “The Convergence of Aesthetics, Politics and Culture: Jeff Donaldson’s Wives of Shango,” AfriCOBRA: Philosophy (The University of Chicago, 2013); “It’s Showtime! The Birth of the Apollo Theater,” Ain’t Nothing Like the Real Thing: How the Apollo Theater Shaped American Entertainment (Smithsonian Books, 2010); “The ‘Museum Baby’ Grows Up: Being a Curator of Color in a Monochromatic Art Museum World,” Museum News (July/August 2005); and, Breaking Racial Barriers: African American Portraits in the Harmon Foundation Collection (Pomegranate Press, 1997). Established in 2014, Voices in American Art brings distinguished arts leaders from important national institutions to Spartanburg for annual presentations. In addition to an evening keynote lecture that is open to the public at no charge, visiting speakers meet with college students for informal master classes on career paths.

South Carolina’s largest private art collection

The Hub will pardon you if you get a little disoriented here, but bear with us. [caption id="attachment_36014" align="alignright" width="600"] The Battle of Gettysburg: Repulse of Longstreet's Assault, July 3, 1863 - James Walker[/caption] What happens when Charleston's daily newspaper writes a feature on the state's largest private art collection, which happens to be in Spartanburg? You get a story that's worth every moment it takes to read. Seriously. Hats off to Adam Parker of the Post & Courier for this feature piece on the ultra-significant Johnson Collection. (Ed. note: The Hub checked in on The Johnson Collection a couple weeks ago when it gifted the above work to the Spartanburg County Public Library.)

But don’t think all this art is sequestered away in a private residence somewhere for the sole enjoyment of the Johnson family. What began as a simple interest in collecting fine art of the Carolinas has become a public enterprise. The inventory has grown so much that it requires a small staff to manage it.

The enterprise is unusual. It’s not a nonprofit. It has no board of directors. It can’t accept donations. It provides no tax benefit to its operators. It generates no revenue. Rather, it is a philanthropic venture with millions of dollars in annual expenditures.

To borrow a line from our friends at the S.C. Arts Alliance, make this today's lunchtime reading.  

Massive ‘Gettysburg’ painting finds new home in Spartanburg

It began as a temporary visit. [caption id="attachment_36014" align="aligncenter" width="600"] The Battle of Gettysburg: Repulse of Longstreet's Assault, July 3, 1863 - James Walker[/caption] On loan for a time from the Johnson Collection, The Battle of Gettysburg: Repulse of Longstreet’s Assault, July 3, 1863 will now not be checking out of the Spartanburg County Public Libraries’ permanent collection. On display since May 2016 in the Moseley Gallery at the Headquarters Library, the panoramic painting records the dramatic sweep, as well as particular details, of the longest—and bloodiest—engagement of the American Civil War. The defeat of Confederate forces in the Pennsylvania countryside marked a critical turning point in the conflict’s outcome. A gift from Susu and George Dean Johnson, Jr., it measures 20 feet in length and over seven feet in height. The monumental canvas was acquired by the Johnson Collection in 2004. In an effort to increase its visibility and maximize its teaching potential, the library leadership and Johnson family initiated a public-private partnership in 2016 which resulted in the work’s relocation from a corporate headquarters to the Moseley Gallery. At its new—and now permanent—home, the painting is available to the Headquarters Library’s nearly 500,000 annual visitors. “Understanding our nation’s complex past is perhaps the best way to prepare for its future,” George Johnson noted. “America’s history belongs to its people, and by placing this remarkable document in public hands, we hope to ensure that the moments it records and the lessons it imparts are accessible to everyone.” “The Libraries’ Board of Trustees and the Friends of the Spartanburg County Libraries are grateful and honored that the Johnson family, who have been long-time patrons of the Library, are entrusting us with The Battle of Gettysburg,” says Mary Speed Lynch, Chair of the Spartanburg County Public Libraries' Trustees. “This widely renowned and much celebrated work of art is an invaluable resource for scholars, art lovers, students and historians.” Read more about how the library is displaying the work from the Spartanburg Herald-Journal.


The Battle of Gettysburg was executed by James Walker (1819-1889), an English immigrant who earned accolades as a painter of battle scenes during the Mexican War, skills he later put to use making sketches of key Civil War conflicts. After the war, Walker began to collaborate with John Badger Bachelder (1825-1894), a photographer and topographic artist who had been attached to the Union army as an illustrator. In the immediate aftermath of the 1863 conflict, Bachelder began an on-site study of the scene and the principals involved. The resulting isometric map led to Walker’s commission to create a massive painting that details the battle’s particulars. Completed in 1870, Walker’s grand canvas captures the dramatic conclusion of the three-day battle, which marked a turning point in the war’s tide. Bachelder’s meticulous research and Walker’s precise technical skill combined to produce an epic visual record of the event, including regimental positions, combat vignettes, Union and Confederate soldiers, noble steeds, victory, and defeat.
Established in 2002, the Johnson Collection includes more than 1,200 works of fine art relating to the American South. Those works are made available to the public at numerous locations throughout Spartanburg, including TJC Gallery, located at 154 West Main St. This exhibition space hosts rotating exhibitions drawn from the collection’s holdings and is open to the public at no charge on Tuesday and Thursday afternoons from 1:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m., as well as during the city’s monthly Art Walk. In addition, large-scale exhibitions travel to museums across the Southeast. The collection’s newest book, Central to Their Lives: Southern Women Artists in the Johnson Collection was released in June by the University of South Carolina Press. That publication’s companion exhibition is presently on view at the Georgia Museum of Art in Athens, and will travel to six additional venues in six different states through 2021. The mission of the Spartanburg County Public Libraries is to create, connect, change.

Dr. Leo Twiggs’ Requiem for Mother Emanuel featured on ESPN

Leo Twiggs ESPNIn August, captains and coaches from the Carolina Panthers football team visited the Johnson Collection in Spartanburg to view the exhibition of Leo Twiggs' Requiem for Mother Emanuel series. The visit served as a springboard for ongoing conversations about race and reconciliation -- not only in the Panthers' locker room, but in communities across the region. In the wake of recent racial unrest in the Panthers' hometown of Charlotte, the dialogue took on even deeper meaning and relevance. As a follow-up to their coverage of the summer story, ESPN crews traveled to Charlotte and Spartanburg to interview the Panthers and Dr. Twiggs. In describing the complex emotions reflected in the nine Requiem paintings, Dr. Twiggs, a lifelong educator, reminds us all that "works of art are repositories of human experiences." View the ESPN video, which aired Oct. 10: On view at TJC Gallery in downtown Spartanburg through October 28, Requiem for Mother Emanuel takes viewers on an emotional and aesthetic journey from the horror of the church shootings through the removal of the Confederate flag from the South Carolina State House grounds to the forgiveness extended by members of the Mother Emanuel congregation. The exhibition will be the foundation of an educational symposium October 11th in Spartanburg. Sponsored by the Johnson Collection. “Requiem for Mother Emanuel: An Exploration of Paint, Poetry, Race & Grace” will examine and expand upon the themes—human, artistic, cultural, and universal—presented in the series. Keynote speakers include Dr. Twiggs, South Carolina poet Nikky Finney, and Jane Panetta, associate curator at the Whitney Museum of American Art. The symposium will take place at 7 p.m., October 11 at Chapman Cultural Center; the event is free and open to the public. Via: The Johnson Collection