Seven new 2025 members of the Artists Collective | Spartanburg will show their works Jan. 6 through 31 in “Bright Beginnings: Celebrating Our Newest Members of The Collective,” an exhibit in the Collective’s Galleries II and III.
An artists’ reception will be held from 5 to 8 p.m. Thursday, Jan. 15, as part of Spartanburg ArtWalk. The reception and exhibition viewing are free and open to the public. Some of the artwork in the show will be offered for purchase.
“Each January, the Artists Collective Spartanburg celebrates all the new members who joined the year before,” says Karina Manukyan, a member of ACS and the coordinator of the exhibit. “In this exhibit, visitors to the Collective will be able to enjoy a wide range of paintings and illustrative work along with ceramics and mosaics. Some of our new members may be a bit apprehensive about the prospect of showcasing their work to the public, but I am sure that everyone will be delighted to see the art they decide to contribute to the show.”
The participating artists are Diane P. McAndrew, acrylic and oil paintings; Rebecca Hickson Dodrill, oil paintings; Kathy McKay, ceramics and mosaics; Steven Sosbee, illustration and painting; Tracy Files, fiber wall art and watercolor paintings; Ryland All, printmaking and pottery; and Gayle Caregnato, oil paintings, acrylic paintings and mixed media collages.
“Each painting is a chance for me to explore color, form and emotion in a new way,” McAndrew says of the art she will exhibit in the show. “My goal is to evoke a sense of calm and invite viewers to connect with the movement and the beauty of nature on each canvas.”
“I like to add a bit of whimsy and fantasy to the world with my work,” adds All. “I hope to get smiles and evoke a sense of wonder. As we age, we are told too many things are for children and that as an adult we have to let it go. I believe that to be false, adults should retain their curiosity and wonder. We should be able to do the things that we enjoy because they bring us joy. We shouldn’t need to explain or justify the things that bring us joy and make us feel good.”
Caregnato says, “A goal of mine when painting is to study nature, form, color and composition in interesting ways. The act of painting brings me challenges, peace and sometimes even delight that the goal shows.”
Dodrill says she hopes visitors to the exhibition will find “something they want to take home,” adding, “We as new members of ACS want to share our individual artistic endeavors as a group.”
“As new members, we are excited to have joined the Collective and to show the community their unique styles of creating art,” McAndrew adds. “This exhibition shows that there is a lot of great creative work going on in Spartanburg. Joining the Artists Collective was important to me in order to grow as an artist. Being in a collective environment provides opportunities to network, have discussions and being able to display your work provides important tools for an artist to learn and grow.”
About the Artists:
Ryland All, a graduate of Agnes Scott College in Decatur, Georgia, enjoys a variety of media, tending to work traditionally with pen or pencil. “I am a classically trained artist, but I can and do work digitally as well,” she says. “In today’s world I find it difficult to unabashedly enjoy certain things others deem as childish. My artwork is an attempt to reclaim the things I enjoy and create a space where other people can enjoy them, too. I like to create fantastical worlds and characters in my work to evoke whimsy and wonder. Using creatures and their environments to bring to life a fantasy world that everyone can enjoy.” She currently primarily works with clay as potter Sally Weber’s apprentice or in the print shop creating prints.
Gayle Caregnato, who studied at the School of the Worcester Art Museum, says before she left for art school, her mother gave her a copy of an ad from a magazine headlined “A woman can find herself painting.” So began her journey. “A lifetime goal of exploring various mediums from knitting home spun fiber into garments, to stained glass, to crafting and trying out designs and ideas over the years has brought me to a happy retirement stage and painting once again,” she says. “So now the journey to find that woman gets investigated every day as I paint and create in my home studio. I love color, textures and nature as fodder for paintings and am always experimenting in new ideas.” She currently is exploring collages.
Kathy McKay, a native South Carolinian, says, “You will find me throwing mid-fire stoneware pottery on the wheel or hand-building as often as I can. I hope to make beautiful functional pieces – planters, mugs, bowls and trays that can add color and light to everyday life. My mosaic glass and ceramic pieces experiment with form, color and pattern. Whenever possible, I try to incorporate plants (making ceramic planters and using botanical and natural imagery) in my pieces.” McKay has been a park ranger for the National Park Service around the country, including at Cowpens National Battlefield, and later worked for the Spartanburg Public Libraries.
Tracy Files says her art “explores the space where softness and structure meet. By combining watercolor with fiber, I bring together two mediums defined by their sensitivity – one flowing and unpredictable, the other grounded in touch and pattern.” She says she is drawn to the quiet conversations that happen between color and texture, translucency and weight, fragility and resilience. Each piece begins with a gesture of watercolor: a wash, a gradient, a stain. The fiber elements respond to these marks, sometimes reinforcing them, sometimes disrupting them. Stitching, weaving, and layering become ways of mapping emotion, recording movement, or holding color in place. The result is work that hovers between painting and textile, inviting viewers to lean in and notice the subtleties of surface and material. In bringing these mediums together, I’m seeking not only visual harmony but also a sense of presence – an intimate moment in which the handmade meets the fluid, and new forms of softness emerge.”
Diane McAndrew, a New Jersey native who has lived in Spartanburg for more than 40 years, says, “My passion for creating art was sparked at an early age by her father’s talents in fabric design, painting, and photography.” She adds, “For me, creating a painting is pure joy. Whether I’m moving fluid acrylics across a canvas or carefully layering oil paints, I find endless inspiration in the movement and energy of nature. I work in a variety of styles – from abstract fluid art to expressive landscapes and, more recently, portraiture. Each piece is a chance to explore color, form, and emotion in a new way. No matter the subject or medium, my goal is to evoke a sense of calm and invite viewers to connect with the natural rhythm and beauty that surrounds us.” She says an especially meaningful artistic moment came in 2025, when one of her paintings paired with a poem written by her mother was featured in an exhibit and sold – “an experience that affirmed the power of blending visual art with the written word.”
Steven Sosbee says of his art, “Exploring the creative landscape of the mind is an obsessive focus of mine. I focus on mixed media, illustrations and paintings.”
Rebecca Hickson Dodrill, a native of Georgia who grew up in Tennessee, South Carolina and North Carolina, says, “There is so much beauty in nature, I want to put the color on the canvas for others to see.”