Hopkins Receives Flourish Award

Booth Museum Executive Director Seth Hopkins recently received the Flourish Award as Arts Leader of the Year. Kennesaw State University College of the Arts presented Hopkins with his award at the Third Annual Flourish Luncheon at Cobb Energy Performing Arts Centre.

Executive Director Seth Hopkins receives the Flourish Award as Arts Leader of the Year from Joseph Meeks, dean of the College of Arts at Kennesaw State University

The Flourish Awards honor those who have helped the arts flourish in Georgia, and Hopkins received Arts Leader of the Year for his many accomplishments over the past 10 years. When he assumed his position in 2000, he was hiring and training staff, developing operating procedures, consulting with the design team on building plans and construction, and directing the organization of the galleries and initial art installation. Hopkins then shifted his attention to fundraising, programs and exhibitions. In the past seven years, the Museum has mounted nearly 100 temporary art exhibitions, many of which were curated or co-curated by him. He has also served as an arts lecturer, writer, scholar and juror. His writings have appeared in several national art magazines.

Said Hopkins on receiving the award, "Winning this award was a great honor. While it is an individual award, I view it as recognition for all that the entire staff at the Booth Museum has accomplished over the past 10 years. It is like winning the Heisman trophy; you can’t win it unless you are on a great team with outstanding players at the other positions. It was also doubly nice to be recognized by the University where I first began studying art."

Congratulations to Seth Hopkins and this wonderful recognition!

What's the Story?

The Booth Western Art Museum offers an array of educational field trips for groups of all ages. Most recently, the education department, along with five contracted teachers, developed and implemented What's the Story? Connecting Art and Literacy. This program uses the artwork in the Museum's collection to help students in Kindergarten through 4th grade enhance their literacy skills.

The idea behind What's the Story was initiated based on statistics that an alarming number of Georgia students lack the basic literacy skills they need to succeed in life. The Workforce Investment Act defines literacy as "an individual's ability to read, write, and speak English, compute, and solve problems at levels of proficiency necessary to function on the job, in the family, and in society." The Booth Museum believes there is a natural correlation between language arts, literacy skills, and the Museum's collection of narrative works. Thus, formulation of What's the Story was developed with those beliefs in mind. Five classroom teachers were contracted to assist in writing the program and represented Cobb, Bartow and Cartersville City schools. These teachers, along with the Booth Museum's education department, met three times per month from April to July to create programs matched to the Georgia Performance Standards for each grade level.

If you are looking for a fun way to connect art and literacy, call today to book What's the Story? Connecting Art & Literacy at 770-387-3849.

A Special Painting and Its Inspiration

The inspiration to create art can come in a variety of ways. For James Ayers, the inspiration to create Prayers of the Shaman came when he learned his mother had cancer. The painting, which was an 8 year process, depicts a Lakota healer tending to a patient.

For over 10 years, James has researched Native American lifeways, including healing ceremonies. He has personally viewed both Hopi and Arapaho healing rites and has researched Lakota shaman traditions. All of these factors, including his own emotions, came into his development of Prayers of the Shaman. "One thing I noticed about healing ceremonies is the importance of family members in the process," says James. "Often, it would be the family member that takes the sick to the healer and they stay there to offer support. This struck me so profoundly, because we still do much of this in the modern day."

He began sketching ideas for the painting when he first learned the news of his mother's illness as a way to work through the flood of emotions he felt. He wanted to capture the intensity of his feelings and also touch on the concepts of healing, hope, and family ties that he learned from studying the Native American way of living. James put the sketch away for a few years until he learned that his mother's cancer had returned, when he felt compelled to take the work from sketch to finished painting.

"You know how when someone gets ill, you say 'You are in my thoughts and prayers'?" James says. "For me, this painting was the ultimate expression of that sentiment. With every brushstroke, I thought about and prayed for my mother."

James' mother has now been in remission for several years.


The Booth Museum is honored to have Prayers of the Shaman on permanent display. Being such a personal piece, it was important to James that the painting have a special display.

Said James, "The Booth Western Art Museum was the perfect choice for this painting. The Museum has a remarkable collection of fine art by prominent and emerging artists and the staff is so knowledgeable, that I felt proud having Prayers of the Shaman in the Booth's permanent collection."



(James Ayers with his painting, Prayers of the Shaman, 24" x 30", oil on canvas)

For more information about James Ayers and his Western artwork, please click here.

Exciting Things at the Booth Museum

It has been some time since the last post.... There has just been so much going on at the Museum it has been difficult to catch you all up!

In May, we opened Four Seasons in Yellowstone: Photographs by Tom Murphy which is on display until September 12. It has been a very popular exhibit - we have seen guests come back two and three times to view the exquisite images captured by master photographer Murphy. There are over 40 images which capture the free, roaming wildlife, as well as the flora, fauna and geological wonders of Yellowstone National Park. Even those who have visited Yellowstone before have seen images they would have never experienced on their own. We were also lucky enough to have Murphy here in person for two special evening lectures and a photography workshop.

June kicked-off the first ever Dinner Theatre series at the Booth Museum. Held the third Thursday in June, July and August, Dinner Theatre was held in the Booth Ballroom and featured live entertainment and a delicious dinner prepared by our Food & Beverage Staff. All three Dinner Theatre events were well attended and featured some familiar Booth Museum staff - Jim Dunham and Doc Stovall - performing favorites: An Evening With Mark Twain, Bullets & Ballads and Trails Plowed Under. We hope to grow our Dinner Theatre series next summer and offer new and exciting live entertainment for our guests!

The first ever Backyard BBQ was held on the Booth Museum lawn in early July. In conjunction with the Downtown Development Authority's Summer Concert and the Bartow History Museum, the Booth Museum invited guests to tour the Museum as well as enjoy a delicious dinner provided by Johnny Mitchell's Smokehouse. Also in July, the 4th Biennial Member, Staff & Volunteer Art Exhibition opened in the Borderlands Gallery. It is amazing to see the talented artists we have in our Museum family! Be sure to stop by and see the great work on display through October 3.

August wasn't much different than the previous three months - busy, busy, busy! The second annual Journey West Gala was held on August 21. The black tie optional event featured live and silent auctions, a cocktail reception, live music, delicious gourmet dinner, and the presentation of the Booth Museum Lifetime Achievement Award to artist Ken Riley. It was a wonderful evening for all those in attendance.

(Honored artist Ken Riley, Maria Riley, and Kelly and Seth Hopkins)

As we enter September, things don't appear to be slowing down too much... It is with great excitement that we prepare for the largest exhibition ever held at the Booth Museum - Ansel Adams: A Legacy. This very special exhibition - occupying two galleries of the Museum - will open on Saturday, September 25. We have several great guest speakers and events scheduled to coincide with the exhibition which will run through February 20, 2011. Be sure to check the Museum website and keep tuned into the Booth Blog for further details.

Booth Hosts Elementary School Art Exhibition

For the second year in a row, the Booth Western Art Museum is hosting the Elementary School Art Exhibition in the Borderlands Gallery. Student's artwork is selected from each of the Bartow County Elementary schools as well as Cartersville City Primary and Elementary school to be on display in the exhibition.

An Opening Reception was held for the Elementary School Art Exhibition on Thursday, April 15. The young artists and their teachers, parents, grandparents, siblings, friends and more visited the Museum to view their artwork on display.

The exhibition is open now through May 15. Check out a few photographs of the talented artists and their proud teachers and parents:
(<--) Carli Clymer of Euarhlee Elementary School and her parents.

Elaina Northrop with her mother and art teacher at Cartersville Primary School, Linn Dreisbach. (-->)

(<--) Some three dimensional pieces of artwork in the exhibition)

Cloverleaf Elementary School art teacher Cindy Collar and her student, Erika Berger. (-->)

Booth Artists' Guild Off to a Great Start

The Booth Artists’ Guild (BAG) held its first meeting last Tuesday, April 6, 2010 at the Booth Art Academy located in the Teacher Resource Center. In addition to learning more about the purpose and function of BAG, the 50 people in attendance heard from Elaine Elder of A New Dimension who presented a program on how to properly photograph one’s artwork and the process of making giclees.

“We were thrilled with the attendance and interest in the BAG and look forward to more opportunities to network with artists representing different mediums and styles,” commented Booth Museum Scheduling & Volunteer Coordinator, Marcia Dillard.

BAG is intended for artists of all levels and experience to continue art education, have the opportunity for their work to be displayed in yearly exhibitions at the Booth Museum, and meet and network with fellow artists. In addition to networking opportunities, the intent is to have a guest speaker at each meeting share something unique and beneficial with the members.

Continued Dillard, “Though we already had a few programs scheduled for upcoming meetings, some ideas for future programs were suggested by several in attendance and included: color mixing and matching in both oils and acrylics; figurative painting and drawing; using Corel and/or Photoshop; calibrating cameras, computers and printers for color printing; setting up personal websites to showcase artwork; marketing artwork during a recession; color in landscapes; pottery demonstrations and how to varnish one’s work successfully.”

Booth Art Academy Manager Natalie Goodwin added, “The vast number of suggestions we received and the wide range of topics prove to me that networking and continuing art education opportunities are a welcome addition to the artists’ lives right now.”

Of the 50 people who attended the first BAG meeting on April 6, more than half paid dues and officially joined the group.

The next meeting of the BAG will be Tuesday, May 4 at 6:00 pm at The Teacher Resource Center. Atlanta artist Henry Patton will present a program on his “Blue Horse” artwork. Membership in the BAG is $24 per year and runs concurrently with a Booth membership. For more information, contact Marcia Dillard at 770-387-3849.

New Twist on Art for Lunch

Many people have come to expect a great lecture or presentation the first Wednesday of every month as part of Art for Lunch. However, things will be slightly different for tomorrow's Art for Lunch....

Booth staff members Robert Hyde and Leonard Gandy, along with Tommy Culpepper and Gary Turner, will present “Civil War Camp Life” in the Booth Ballroom - - instead of the typical Booth Theatre location.

The four gentlemen will dress in Civil War uniforms and will have original artifacts from the Civil War as well as authentic equipment and supplies soldiers in camp would have had. The program will highlight what went on in camp during the Civil War – including the boredom and hardships which were endured. The program will also tie into several art pieces we have in our permanent collection at the Booth Museum.

Also new to the typical Art for Lunch, we will offer lunch for purchase in the Booth Ballroom. For $7, visitors can have an all-you-can-eat soup and salad bar with a drink, or have a sandwich (turkey, ham or chicken salad) with chips, cookie and a drink.

We are expecting a large crowd due to the topic and great lunch selection being offered, so be sure to get here in plenty of time to make it to the 12:15 pm Art for Lunch.

Hope to see you there!