A crowd of people look at the jewelry and artwork on displayed at the ArtWorks building on Vance Street.
Hundreds flood Vance Street for opening of ArtWorks
A group of people mingle near one of the sculptures on display and the other artwork that surrounded it hanging on the moveable walls.
It was nearly elbow-to-elbow inside the new ArtWorks building Thursday night as people gathered to view all the pieces on display.
A small crowd crowd gathers to look at the artwork hanging on the moveable gallery walls.
Local and out-of-county residents enjoy talking to one another as they mingled though the art displays during the Thursday night opening and dedication.
Khrissy Smith and Mark Sandy, residents of Sampson County, came out to see the artwork being shown in the newly renovated and opened ArtWorks gallery.
An excited Dr. Paul Viser, ArtWorks Director of Logistics, opens the night’s dedication ceremony.
ArtWorks Director of Finance Johnny Pridgen adds his own comments during the building dedication Thursday night.
Peter Butler, Art Director and President of ArtWorks, welcomes the community to the new facility.
Clinton Mayor Lew Starling congratulates he ArtWorks Board of Directors for opening up the gallery. He also mentioned that this gallery is only the beginning of new businesses and people that will be drawn to downtown Clinton.
From left: Jonelle Strickland, president of the Sampson Arts Council; Viser; Ray Jordan, treasurer of the Sampson Arts Council; and Sampson Arts Council Executive Director Kara Donatelli at Thursday night’s building dedication.
Special guest Liza Roberts shares her excitement for the new building and how she thinks it will help Clinton grow during Thursday’s event.
“North Carolina is an extraordinary place for the visual arts,” Peter Butler, the Art Director and President of ArtWorks, said in his speech at Thursday night’s ArtWorks building dedication. “And we are thrilled to have some very special talented people here tonight … from the region, from the state and also from our own county.”
The atmosphere in the newly renovated, and opened ArtWorks building in downtown Clinton was loud and lively at the building dedication as over 100 people from the county, and even further away, made their way inside while dressed in their Sunday best. At the front were tables of pottery and a band playing light jazz music. At the back were large crowds of people talking together while they sipped on their drinks and ate the offered hors d’oeuvres. And between it all was the rest of the displayed art and the community members who studied it all.
The night started with quick speeches given by the Board of Directors for ArtWorks, Clinton Mayor Lew Starling, members of the Sampson Arts Council and special guest Liza Roberts, who wrote “Art of the State: Celebrating the Visual Art of North Carolina.”
Most of the speeches centered around the support given by the community.
“We’re just so grateful for our supporters for making this possible,” an excited Dr. Paul Viser, the director of Logistics at ArtWorks, said during his speech. “We want to give the artists a place to sell their art full time, year after year, something they can count on.”
Equally as excited was Johnny Pridgen, the director of Financial Operations for ArtWorks, who was beaming nearly the entire night, pleased with the attendance and the building itself.
“I’m just overwhelmed by the number of people here,” Pridgen said during his speech to the gathered crowd. “Thank y’all for coming and supporting us. It has been a pleasure. I think tonight we can sleep a lot better seeing this crowd and the people that are here and the enthusiasm and the remarks that we have received.”
Roberts’ speech spoke of her own excitement, the catalyst, she said, which came from seeing the support the dedication was given.
“I love to go see new arts organizations get launched, and it doesn’t happen every day, but this is a really spectacular launch. I feel really honored to be here to see this cultural hub sprout and sort of erupt like this,” she said.
After the speeches, everyone was given more time to look around the gallery before they went home for the night.
Pridgen said Friday morning that he believed about 10 items were sold during the Thursday event. He noted that he wasn’t expecting many things to get sold. Instead, he said that the dedication was to bring the community out to show them what the gallery had to offer. He was happy with the outcome, he attested.
“When you go through a project like this and it comes to this type of conclusion, a successful conclusion, and the community comes out, it is really beautiful,” Pridgen said.
The ArtWorks gallery is open Wednesday through Friday from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. and on Saturday from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.
You can reach Alyssa at 910-249-4617