Carol Story was a grandmother already when she first picked up a paintbrush and became an artist. That was 15 years ago, and now she’s ready for something bigger. Story will exhibit some of her new paintings – all 16-by-20-inch or larger oils – in “The Bigger Picture,” an exhibition Nov. 8 through Dec. 3 in Gallery III of the Artists Collective | Spartanburg.
An artist’s reception will be held Nov. 17 as part of ArtWalk Spartanburg.
Story’s fifth individual show for the Artists Collective includes more than a dozen new paintings – landscapes, florals and other subjects done in oil on gallery-wrapped canvas or framed linen panels. “It’s all new and all painted with joy,” she says. The larger pieces – a departure for Story – will be offered for sale, with prices ranging from $450 to $600.
She says that recently she read “an old standard,” Julia Cameron’s “The Artist’s Way.” “It was an encouragement to accept how I paint and to learn from admired artists without measuring my work against theirs. This inspired me to push myself, painting some larger paintings – at least bigger for me.”
A native of Georgia who has lived in Spartanburg for 42 years, Story says her philosophy as an artist is “to use whatever gifts I’ve been given to tell the truth as beautifully as I can, to quote an artist friend. As an oil painter, I want to grow artistically from realistic copying to more impressionist expression.”
Story says she hopes the varied subjects and colors of the works “will speak to each viewer of nature’s beauty and how a painting can bring this into greater focus. I want patrons to get pleasure in viewing and connection to something personal loved or remembered with joy.”
Story has participated in juried shows in Spartanburg and Anderson. Since taking her first painting class at Spartanburg’s Chapman Cultural Center, she has done mentoring sessions with North Carolina artist Jim Carson and numerous workshops with other oil painters.
A member of the Artists Collective | Spartanburg since 2015 and now serving on its management board, Story says, “It is a so helpful to have a gallery studio at the Collective, which is open to the public during business hours. It is also a privilege to have an individual exhibit annually. The ACS is a diverse group of people with whom I most likely would not have become friends. We are unified by the desire to progress in our own art making and to promote the arts in Spartanburg.”