The arts have always been an important part of Charleston's fabric. For centuries, the city has produced, nurtured, and encouraged artists of all disciplines, while her magnificent architecture, natural beauty, moderate climate and colorful people have provided infinite inspiration to artists and art lovers, alike.
The Charleston Renaissance, a period between about 1915 and 1940, was inspired by local artists, who helped engender pride in Charleston after the city had languished during the last third of the 19th century, devastated by the Civil War and Reconstruction.
In coming generations, when the clarity of hindsight looks upon the period between the late 1980s and now, perhaps it will be worthy of a moniker such as "the second Charleston Renaissance," as it seems to mark a new era for the visual arts.
This "coming of age," which continues to unfold, began when the spotlight fell on the city as a paradise for visitors. Once the "best-kept secret in the South," the last two decades have seen Charleston emerge as one of the top 10 tourist destinations in the Southeast. And with this surge in tourism, fresh eyes began to fall on the works of some of Charleston's own great masters and emerging talents. Among the visitors who came were other artists from across the nation, who were lured by her charm, and sold by the cohesive and supportive environment afforded local artists. Slowly the art community began to grow in numbers and in national and international visibility.
A trip to the Gibbes Museum of Art, Charleston's only fine art museum, reveals much about the city's love and commitment to the visual arts. Established in 1858, the Gibbes features a distinguished collection of historic and contemporary works as well as a year-round schedule of fascinating art exhibitions, programs and family events. The museum offers residents and visitors access to an interesting collection of over 10,000 American works including paintings, prints, drawings, photography, sculpture and miniature rooms. The Gibbes is also known for its premier collection of miniature portraits and an engaging collection of Japanese woodblock prints. And the Gibbes works diligently to exhibit the works of Charleston's own fine artists.
For the artist and the art lover, there is no other city in America that offers the quality or variety of fine art found on just a few narrow streets in downtown Charleston. It would take volumes to highlight each talented artist, but to whet your appetite Discover Charleston would like to introduce you to just a few.
Anne Worsham Richardson opened Birds I View Gallery in downtown Charleston more than three decades ago. Since then she has earned a reputation for being one of the world's foremost painters of birds and animals. Recognized as a truly great artist, her works have been exhibited throughout the United States and Europe.
All of Richardson's work reveals her deep appreciation and respect for all life, and the need to protect our natural resources. The artist maintains a wildlife sanctuary outside her studio where birds are brought to her in various stages of disability. Under her care, they often recover and are able to be returned to the wild. In the meantime, she uses the birds as models for many of her paintings. This opportunity to study them at close range helps Richardson capture a lifelike portrayal of each subject in her work.
Richardson is the first woman bird painter ever to be selected by the National Federation in Washington, D.C. to receive the "Art Print of the Year Award." Her watercolor of the California quail was selected for this honor and published in National Wildlife Magazine in 1970, and 18 of her paintings have been reproduced on National Wildlife Christmas cards.
In 1975, President Gerald Ford received her at the White House to recognize her for her work. Exhibitions of her bird paintings have been shown in museums and galleries throughout South Carolina, and across the country. In 1978, she was invited to exhibit 50 bird paintings in the Castle in Glucksburg, Schleswig-Holstein, West Germany. Then in 1982, a profile of the artist, called "Every Day a Celebration" by South Carolina author Melanie Harris, was entered into the Congressional Record.
Paintings and prints by Anne Worsham Richardson are featured exclusively at Birds I View Gallery located at 119-A Church St., in downtown Charleston.
A decade ago, John R. Duckworth's journey brought him to Charleston. His artwork is characterized by an intense love of movement, color theory and a fascination with the "captured moment."
As a professional photographer and graphic designer, he incorporates "commercial" skills into his artwork. "The camera and the computer are simply modern tools of the trade," says Duckworth. "I use them just as early painters used the camera obscura and camera lucida - as tools for initial sketches."
Duckworth uses the camera and computer as sketchpads and then carefully deconstructs the images to include only the most basic forms before painting. The resulting work straddles Realism, Abstraction and Impressionism, and reflects an appreciation of the natural beauty of landscape, cityscapes and human interaction within these environments.
This diversity of interest and styles isn't surprising, considering the long list of artists who acted as both mentors and teachers. Having worked under David Baze in San Diego for several years as a teenager, he studied with Wayne Thiebaud at U.C. Davis, with ceramic artist Les Lawrence at Grossmont College, and later earned a bachelor's degree in studio art studying under Cliff Peacock, Michael Tyzack and Michelle Van Parys at the College of Charleston.
John Duckworth is currently working as an artist in two industries - as part owner and art director of a communications agency in Charleston and as a painter working with both acrylics and oils. Over the past five years, his paintings have been sold to collectors in New York, Charlotte, Los Angeles, Seattle, Atlanta, Charleston and Canada.
Private showings of Duckworth's paintings can be arranged by calling (843) 343-6414. Five of his new oil paintings have been commissioned by Carolina's restaurant, and will be featured during the 2004 season of Spoleto Festival USA.
For Mary Whyte, Seabrook Island provides the peace, seclusion and inspiration for her art. She has earned national recognition as both an artist and illustrator. Many of her paintings have been exhibited in some of the nation's most prestigious shows, including those presented by the American Watercolor Society and the Allied Artists of America.
To date, Whyte has illustrated more than a dozen children's books, including a three-book series for a Japanese publisher. A review of her most current children's book, P is for Palmetto by Carol Crane, reads in part, "…within the images of Mary Whyte, you can almost envision yourself standing in the vast cotton fields and walking along the sandy shores of its stunning coastline. South Carolinians, young and old, will treasure P is for Palmetto…"
Whyte has traveled the country capturing personalities on canvas and paper. Her rich environment of Seabrook Island gave birth to another passion… paintings of nearby John's Island and the people who live along Bohicket Road. Longtime residents of the island and descendants of slaves, this group of African-American women inspired a decade-long journey for Whyte to chronicle the Gullah culture of the Lowcountry. In these paintings, she uses the watercolor medium to its fullest advantage, producing rich, dark tones and textures that are characteristic of African-American skin, as well as the pale, translucency of lighter skinned people. Whyte's love of the Gullah people is the focus of her most recent book, Alfreda's World, which reveals the life of Whyte's friend, Alfreda LaBoard, LaBoard's children and grandchildren. Through her paintings and prose, Whyte introduces readers to a piece of Lowcountry history that is frozen in time.
Coleman Fine Art, located at 79 Church St., in downtown Charleston, features many of Whyte's paintings, as well as works by other artists.
Karl Beckwith Smith can often be spotted sketching or photographing a magnificent Lowcountry landscape scene. What begins as a photo, or a simple line image on a pad may actually be bigger than life by the time Smith is finished.
Skilled in a multitude of artistic mediums, Smith's ability to think big - really big - has earned him a reputation as one of the area's premier mural artists. Through his years in Charleston, his murals have been featured in a number of local restaurants. His work graces the walls of the health club in Charleston Place Hotel, and he was commissioned to restore the murals in the old Riviera Theatre located on King St., in downtown Charleston.
Encouraged by his childhood art teachers, Smith went on to study art history at Princeton University. Inspired by Princeton's resident painter, Estaben Vicente, a second generation abstract expressionist, Smith thrived, and become one of the first students to graduate from Princeton with painting as his thesis.
After spending more than a decade working in the New York City business world, his art filling his spare moments, Smith finally succumbed to his muse and made art his life's work.
In 1992, the artist moved to Charleston. While Smith describes himself as "line-oriented" and someone "more interested in drawing than painting," his work actually reflects a multitalented artist skilled in pen and ink, watercolor and acrylic.
Today, Smith's work is largely on display in Lowcountry homes. One recent mural, which hangs in a house on Kiawah Island, literally fills a magnificent 30-foot-high architectural space with colorful landscape rich in botanical detail and panoramic views.
Also interested in interior design and decorative painting, Smith drew on a multitude of skills to transform a raw 1,500-square-foot bedroom in downtown Charleston into a magnificent living space with an "antique" look. The project involved a combination of woodworking, painted trompe l'oeil, stenciling, glass etching and mural painting.
Prints of some of Smith's work are available at Halcyon Place, located at 48 Wentworth St., in downtown Charleston. To arrange a private showing in his studio, please call (843) 860-5157.
Bocci's - a great Italian restaurant in historic downtown Charleston on Church Street. USA Today has called Bocci's one of the leading Italian restaurants in the United States. Bocci's serves full Italian fare, excellent wines, heavenly desserts and gourmet coffees all at affordable prices. Perfect for the whole family. Dinner nightly.
Original vintage poster art. A glimpse of European advertising at the turn of the 20th Century. Covering the walls of the gallery are large splashes of color inviting you to the Moulin Rouge and Monaco Grand Prix. The gallery’s selection includes the Belle Epoch, Art Nouveau, Art Deco and contemporary periods.
Anderson Studio of Architecture and Design has been established on the premise that listening to clients is key to a successful project. Custom crafted private residences in Kiawah Island and throughout the Lowcountry, office design and renovation of historic structures meeting the highest expectations of their clients.
Anne Worsham Richardson opened Birds I View Gallery in downtown Charleston more than three decades ago. Since then she has earned a reputation for being one of the world's foremost painters of birds and animals. Recognized as a truly great artist, her works have been exhibited throughout the United States and Europe.
A decade ago, John R. Duckworth's journey brought him to Charleston. His artwork is characterized by an intense love of movement, color theory and a fascination with the "captured moment." 
For Mary Whyte, Seabrook Island provides the peace, seclusion and inspiration for her art. She has earned national recognition as both an artist and illustrator. Many of her paintings have been exhibited in some of the nation's most prestigious shows, including those presented by the American Watercolor Society and the Allied Artists of America.
Karl Beckwith Smith can often be spotted sketching or photographing a magnificent Lowcountry landscape scene. What begins as a photo, or a simple line image on a pad may actually be bigger than life by the time Smith is finished.
Bocci's - a great Italian restaurant in historic downtown Charleston on Church Street. USA Today has called Bocci's one of the leading Italian restaurants in the United States. Bocci's serves full Italian fare, excellent wines, heavenly desserts and gourmet coffees all at affordable prices. Perfect for the whole family. Dinner nightly.
Original vintage poster art. A glimpse of European advertising at the turn of the 20th Century. Covering the walls of the gallery are large splashes of color inviting you to the Moulin Rouge and Monaco Grand Prix. The gallery’s selection includes the Belle Epoch, Art Nouveau, Art Deco and contemporary periods.
Anderson Studio of Architecture and Design has been established on the premise that listening to clients is key to a successful project. Custom crafted private residences in Kiawah Island and throughout the Lowcountry, office design and renovation of historic structures meeting the highest expectations of their clients. 
