Rural America is dotted with old homesteads, many of which are abandoned and falling into ruin. The rich textures and interesting visual silhouettes that they produce make for some very affecting images.

Travel down any rural road and you will likely see an abandoned farmhouse, barn, sharecropper’s shack, or, at the very least an old chimney where a house once stood. Couple this with the overgrown bushes and uncut grasses with the varied cool and warm colors of an autumn day or a snow covered landscape and a tale is waiting to be told.

The Abandoned Rural America exhibit and related book, video, etc. is the product of artists and photographers Angelina Bellebuono, Joseph Coggins, Elizabeth Collins, Charles St. John Dyer, Cameron Hampton, Chuck Hanes, Mary Leslie Hartman, Cassie Hawkins, Don Jolley, Peter Muzyka, Mev Rozsman, Kate Sherrill, Blake Smith, Eugene Swain, Sam Traina, Lisa Wheeler, Kathy Williams, Lori Williams, Mark Maio, and Steven Kippels. The ARA book is also contributed to by writers Don Mobley Adams, Jackie Askew, Glen Benskin, Bill Boughner, Boots Coffed, Barry Darugar, Barb Griffiths, George Heiring, Jeanne Dube Herrero, Peter Muzyka, Pat Olson, Robert Scully, Davis Temple, Helen vonRichthofen, Linda Wagner, Gay Williford, and Kathy Wright.

Musicians who have contributed their talents to the Abandoned Rural America project include; Joe Reynolds and Tom Sparks: "Keepers of the Sound", Amanda Elizabeth Adams Zuniga: "Family Land", and Thomas Elliott: "The Miracle of the Seed"

Artists Camera Hampton and Mary Leslie Hartman join the ranks of ARA exhibition artists:

Cameron Hampton - is a Masters Circle Member of the International Association of Pastel Societies, earning her Gold Medal in the Spring of 2007. She is also a Signature Member of the Pastel Society of America, the Southeastern Pastel Society and the Alabama Pastel Society. She is a painter, photographer, sculptor and illustrator. Hampton attended both Pratt Institute in Brooklyn, New York and The Atlanta College of Art (now The Savannah College of Art and Design) in Atlanta, Georgia. Also, she has studied independently in Austria, Belgium, The Netherlands, Slovakia, and Hungary where she lived. Hampton has works in corporate and private collections throughout the world.

Mary Leslie Hartman - As a child growing up in a family of six, it was my dream to one day surround myself with all the animals that so captured my heart. That dream was put aside as I went to college, married and spent 15+ years painting murals all over Atlanta and the southeast. It wasn't until 2000 that 'real' horses entered my life with my quarter horse, Indy, and as my husband liked to say -- "changed our lives forever".In 2005 we pulled up stakes and headed for the country where our menagerie quickly multiplied. It was at this time that I began to dedicate my time to painting the animals that I share my life with and so inspire me every day. When people look at my paintings it is my hope that they will see the personality and mood of the characters I am portraying ... and I assure you they are all CHARACTERS!

Mary Leslie Hartman's work spans the artistic gamut from oils to encaustics. We are pleased to showcase her encaustic works in future ARA exhibits

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Textile artist Kathy Williams and reverse glass painting artist Lori Williams join the ranks of ARA exhibition artists for inclusion in the Abandoned Rural America 5-year anniversary exhibit:

     

ARA Exhibiting Photographer Lisa Wheeler Wins "Best In Photography" Award

  

Angelina Bellebuono  Elizabeth Collins   Charles St John Dyer   Cameron Hampton   Chuck Hanes  Joe Coggins
Cassie Hawkins   Mary Leslie Hartman   Don Jolley   Peter Muzyka    Eugene Swain    Mev Rozsman   Kate Sherrill   Blake Smith 
Sam Traina   Lisa Wheeler    Kathy Williams   Lori Williams