The Delta Artists Association was founded in the year 2000 under the aegis of the Greenville Arts Council, and is filled with talented painters, potters, photographers, printmakers, woodturners, and visual artists at every skill level. Charter members who have remained active these past twenty years include Janice “Honey” Dean, Roy Meeks, Lilly Iris Mitchell, Lynda Trammell, Martha Virden, and founding members Juanita Gray and Jamie Tate; the group has since added many new members over the years while bidding goodbye to old friends who have passed on.
The purpose of Delta Artists Association is to support and promote visual artists in the Greenville area, but their scope is not limited only to Greenville. Artists who live in the Mississippi and Arkansas Delta or have strong Delta connections may join the Delta Artists Association and enter work in an exhibit by contacting Mary Catherine Brooks at delta.artists@gmail.com to receive a membership form; annual dues are only $35.
The organization generally holds three or more exhibits each year in locations around the state, including the Leland Progress, the B.B. King Museum, the Delta Arts Alliance, and Spectacles of Jackson; they also exhibit their work at Delta Regional Medical Center and South Main restaurant. The membership benefits from a variety of professional-level workshops and field trips that are organized by the association. The Exhibit Chair this year is Patricia Brown of Cleveland. Other officers include Mary Lynn Powers of Lamont, President; Melanie Mitchell Tucker of Greenville, Vice-President; Mary Catherine Brooks of Leland; Secretary-Treasurer; Nancy Stone-Streett of Greenville, Workshop Chair; and Kay Shropshire Heller of Canton, Hospitality Chair.
This year’s 20th anniversary Member Exhibit will be judged by Dana Finimore, a fine arts professor at Northwest Mississippi Community College and is also a metals instructor at the Arkansas Craft School. She has enjoyed a very diverse career path as a visual artist and artisan. Her work as a visual artist includes mixed-media painting, clay, and small metals. The core of her work is centered in finding inspiration from the natural world. Compositional explorations in mixed media are expressive responses to her time spent in nature. Ms. Finimore’s early years spent roaming the creek banks and meadows of north central Arkansas’ Ozark Mountains instilled in her a reverence for the environment. She is a member of the Craftsman’s Guild of Mississippi, the Teaching Artist Guild, and the Arkansas Craft School. She has a BFA in Painting and an MFA in Studio Art from the Memphis College of Art.
Ms. Finimore will award prizes for Best in Show, Second Place, Third Place, and Judge’s Merit Award. The top prize carries an award of $500. All of the works will be offered for sale through the Greenville Arts Council.
Due to COVID-19 restrictions, this 20th anniversary celebration of Delta artists will be held solely online. Beginning October 1 at 5:30 p.m., patrons and friends may access a link on the Greenville Arts Council’s website. The link will also be posted on social media and will be emailed to members and friends of the Greenville Arts Council. The work will be visible online through November 20.
For more information, go to greenville-arts-council.com or deltaartistsassociation.org.
