Jasper Project Presents 3rd Thursday Featured Artist Sonya Diimmler in The Nook @ Koger Center

Opening Reception - Thursday, July 16th 5:30 - 7

Join Jasper and Friends this Thursday evening our Nook Gallery space at the Koger Center for the Arts as we celebrate the opening of Sonya Diimmler’s new exhibition of highly emotive abstract.

Part of a collaboration between the Jasper Project, the Koger Center, and the Congaree Vista, Jasper programs a monthly rotating gallery on the second tier of the Koger with an opening celebration each Thursday.

Blossoming Romance by Sonya Diimmler

According to the artist, “Sonya Diimmler brings dramatic color to dreamy contemporary landscapes and larger than life abstracts.” The artist “discovered painting during a season of caring for her aging parents. Serendipitously painting became a way to process loss, navigate grief, and rediscover hope. The dynamic color, loose brushwork, and expressive mark-making, convey emotion and energy.”

Diimmler paints colorful South Carolina lake and landscapes along with her favorite subject and muse, her Bulldog Smedley. Sonya’s work has earned awards at the SC State Fair, Union County Arts Council, and Crooked Creek Art League.

Having just started painting in 2015, Sonya fell in love with the process and quickly began a daily painting practice. She continually seeks to improve through frequent workshops and has studied with the late Mary Bentz Gilkerson and Michael Story.

In 2016 she joined the Crooked Creek Art League in Chapin, SC where she served as Workshop Coordinator and President and remains an active member. She has participated in a number of community art projects including her popular “Ship of Drools” sailboat from The Arts Sail into Chapin project in 2019. She also created the colorful canine and feline portraits on the fence outside Chapin Veterinary Hospital on Columbia Avenue in Chapin.

Diimmler now paints full time from her home studio in Prosperity, South Carolina.

Enjoy Diimmler’s art at the Koger Center during standard opening hours as well as before and after all Koger Center events throughout July and until the third week of August.

FROM THE PRINT ISSUE -- Jasper Writes About 5 of the 6 Koger Center Project Winning Artists (and we're adding the 6th to our story bank!)

At the Jasper Project we have nothing but praise and appreciation for the work the Koger Center for the Arts has done to bring more diverse arts disciplines to their halls. In addition to providing Jasper with a designated space called The Nook to offer monthly openings in conjunction with The Vista’s Third Thursday celebration (thanks Koger!), over the past few years they have elevated SC visual arts appreciation by sponsoring their own visual arts contest (sort of awkwardly) titled The Koger Center Project. Jasper has written about this year’s winners already via Jasper Online, but we were happy to find that we have already written about 5 out of 6 of the winning artists in the pages of Jasper Magazine. Let’s take a look back at these stories by visiting the Jasper Magazine archives.

Photo by Perry McLeod

Kate Timbes: Right Places, Right Times

By Emily Moffitt

 

Ten days after Kate Timbes graduated from Wofford University, she moved halfway across the world to Germany. This was a decision that became integral not only to her career, but to her life as an artist.

Timbes graduated from Wofford’s studio art program in 2023 with a minor in business and film. She grew up in a creative household, amongst a sister with an affinity for art and a father who worked as an architect. The creative spirit of her family spanned multiple generations; Timbes’ grandfather is an artist as well, and her mother often brought her to bead crafting shows growing up. “I credit my parents and their support and belief in me to be an artist,” says Timbes. “They never questioned my career choice.” Her parents were there to watch her artistic abilities flourish from coloring with crayons, to creating commissions for their family friends. Even now, Timbes’ studio where she perfects her craft is at her parents’ house.

Growing up, Timbes knew she wanted to pursue art after spending her childhood years painting and making jewelry, but she originally considered graphic design as a career. It was not until her undergraduate years at Wofford that she discovered and fell in love with studio art. While studying studio art, she got to explore with a variety of mediums and pursued as many opportunities as possible to learn what she could. “I accepted a work study at a school in Tennessee where I learned to spin my own wool,” says Timbes. “I saw so many other artists honing their craft, and they were all so encouraging and eager to share their knowledge with me.”

Photo by Perry McLeod

As her studies progressed, one of her professors at Wofford approached her and asked if she had any experience making paper. “I told her I had seen it be made, and I spent the next two months learning as much as I could about the medium,” Timbes says. “I was going to help lead a class on how to make your own paper. The next thing I knew, I could not get my hands out of paper baths.”

Awakened with a sense of wonder in how to push the limits of this newfound medium, Timbes started to see motifs from her existing practice reawakened. She found that she resonated with the low-to-zero waste practice of making paper from scratch and wanted to learn how to use plant fibers to make new sheets. Timbes says, “I felt very connected to a tradition that is starting to disappear in certain places around the world.”

At the beginning of her papermaking practice, Timbes would experiment with sheet pulling to see what would happen, figuring out if the sheet would be used for painting, sculpture, or just exist as a sheet of paper. Now, just a few years later, paper making is Timbes’ primary method of creating building blocks for her art in her daily routine. “When I am on the journey to find what possibilities exist within paper, and what it is going to do to push me...I find it to be a very conversational art practice.”

Photo by Perry McLeod

Conversation itself is integral to many of Timbes’ artistic endeavors. The paper that Timbes creates is made through a conversation of intention: what will a specific piece of paper be used for, what kind of fibers are needed for the sheet, and how will it react to the additives? Timbes even casts her own body in handmade paper for some of her projects. The resourcefulness of the artist is not reserved for making paper from scratch, however, as she is proficient in using fabric to create stunning installation and performance work. One notable medium that Timbes has visited multiple times in her career is a simple bedsheet. “In 2022, when I was working on my senior project, Roe V. Wade was overturned,” says Timbes. “I looked for an outlet for rage, and turned to tearing up bed sheets, weaving the strips into rage rooms.” The accessibility of bedsheets made the project’s foundation easy to start. Using leftover paint from a previous mural project, the rage room installation came to fruition by throwing the watered-down paint all over the stripped, cut, and torn bedsheets until they dried. Afterwards, she created circular installations with the strips by weaving them together to create a microcosm of rage and relief.

The experience with this project followed her from Spartanburg to Garmisch. In a setting with no formal studio or ample space to create like she had in college, Timbes made sure to immerse herself in the culture of the small ski resort town she worked out of. After spending time researching the local ecology and energy of the town, it prompted her to reflect on her own desires as an artist. “I had to ask myself, ‘What am I passionate about? How do I narrow everything down? Am I a sculptor, painter, or something else?’” She ended up cultivating all these thoughts and experiences with her surroundings into her notable performance piece/sculpture/photography series, “I Cut My Arms Off So That I Could Fly.” In her hotel room, Timbes found an ample number of bedsheets once again to be her canvas. “The piece is a fiber sculpture turned performance that was inspired by a glacier that melted off the top of the highest mountain in Germany,” says Timbes. “There were so many tours going up there, but no acknowledgment of the glacier itself. It was almost like a tourist attraction that did not exist.” Some church groups in the area hosted funerals for the glacier, which pushed Timbes to create a remembrance of her own. After tearing and dyeing the bed sheets, she wove them into a set of arms she could wear. It was not until right before the ski season ended that Timbes came up with the perfect idea: “I took the piece up into the mountain and decided to ski down while wearing it. That’s where the photos came from.” What resulted was a stunning coalescence of movement, reverence, and originality that has reappeared throughout Timbes’ portfolio.

Now in the present day, Timbes has taken all of her life experiences and creative endeavors and melded them into a path she is sure to take with aplomb. Timbes has joined an artist collective named Zerospace, participated not only in exhibits across South Carolina, but as far away as California and Denmark. Building a community and participating in one that exists amongst her artist peers is the most important thing to Timbes’ artistic practice. At Woven Studios, Timbes creates murals and takes commissions, emphasizing the importance of understanding her clients. Building relationships with clients fosters trust, while collaborating with other artists inspires creativity and new ideas, especially now that she's returned to South Carolina. “Within the last year, tapping into the Carolinas’ creative communities has really fueled my practice, and I have acknowledged how important creative spaces are,” says Timbes.

Photo by Perry McLeod

Upcoming projects for Timbes include participation in the Koger Center’s annual art competition exhibit, where a jury-selected panel of SC artists is featured and Timbes was awarded first place. Additionally, Timbes is developing a new collection of fiber and paper-based works inspired by German folklore. Timbes’ explores subject matter and artistic concepts with the originality and passion of someone who has given themself the grace to create without self-imposed boundaries: a tenet passed down from her father. “It is hard to navigate the world right now, let alone as an artist in her 20s,” says Timbes. “But I have to be okay with failure, comfortable with vulnerability, and just reiterate to myself that whatever happens, I got this.” With a knack for storytelling and working with intention, she is well on her way to fashioning herself as one of the young artists to watch in Columbia, SC or wherever her journey takes her.

 This article appears in the current issue of Jasper Magazine, Spring 2026.

Return to this space to read about Koger’s Featured Artists Anna Byars, Lori Isom, Wilma King & Colleen Cannon-Karlos. And to keep up with Jasper’s ALL-ARTS news & articles between print issues, go to JasperProject.org, find Magazine on the front page, then scroll down for Jasper Online. Recent articles have included local theatre reviews, news about Columbia Classical Ballet, calls for art, the SEPF, SCSM artist talks & everything about our current Big Thing,

Jasper’s Play Right Project.

Jasper Welcomes SC Photo Artists to the Jasper Alley at Tapp's for First Thursday in July

The Jasper Project is excited to announce our July First Thursday lineup for the Jasper Alley at Tapp’s. Still Here is a group photography exhibition featuring the work of SC photographers Jackson Campbell, Perry McLeod, Nora Williams, Alexander McDonald, Jr., and TuJuan “TJ” Huiett.

Please join us on Thursday, July 2nd from 6 – 8:30 PM to view their photography and spend some quality time with all of our artists. There will be wine & beer for purchase, music (TBA), and new issues of Jasper Magazine. When you enter the building through the front door at 1644 Main Street, head all the way to the right where you’ll find the Jasper Alley. Our featured artists will be on hand to answer questions about their work and processes.

Artist - Alexander McDonald, Jr.

Featured Artists

Alexander McDonald, Jr.

Alexander S. McDonald Jr. is a photographer whose studio has been the American highway for eighteen years. A long-haul truck driver by trade, he has crossed nearly every road in this country – building a quiet, sustained practice of documenting what most people drive past without seeing. His work focuses on landscape, sky, and the charged stillness of in-between places: cloud formations, mountain ranges, open plains, and overlooked roadside moments. McDonald's images don't reach for spectacle. They reach for honesty – the feeling of a place, alight a second that insists on being remembered. He is based on the road and everywhere in between. 

Artist - Perry McLeod

Perry McLeod

Perry McLeod is a Fullbright scholar, retired high school teacher, a photographer and avid traveler. He shoots sports, concerts, events, “and just about anything else I can point a camera at,” he says. “I love photography! Every day is a new adventure and I just want to capture the moments that will make people stop and think. Make people want to make a change. Make people smile. Make people go –‘Damn’ or ‘Nice’ or ‘Wow,” he says. “Photography is the most perfect art - we all get moments that will never happen again. It's frozen in time forever - how cool is that?”

A USC alumnus, McLeod taught Social Studies and Digital Media Production in both Richland District One and Richland District Two for 31 years. During his teaching career, he established a digital media production program at Richland Northeast High School, which fueled his love for photography and his fascination with video production. After retiring from education, McLeod's passion for photography continued to grow, and he has worked for several local and national media outlets. In addition to photography, McLeod has a deep love for travel. He says, "When I travel, my mind races with all the new things around me. I see a face, an old building, or an amazing vista, and I have to capture that moment." He believes that "a photograph is magic!"

Artist - Nora Williams

Nora Williams

Nora Williams was born and raised in South Carolina. As a fine-art, documentary artist, she explores the complexities of identity, place, and history in the American South. Her work examines themes of resilience, belonging, and social change, often focusing on underrepresented narratives.


Williams’ photographs have been exhibited in galleries that include the Elder Gallery of Contemporary Art. Williams has covered stories for The New York Times, The Washington Post, Rolling Stone, Huffington Post, and The Wall Street Journal. She is an FAA-certified drone pilot and a member of Black Women Photographers, Diversify Photo, NPPA, and Alternate Roots. She is currently pursuing her MFA in Studio Art with a concentration in Photography at the University of South Carolina. 

Artist - TJ Huiett

TaJuan "TJ" Huiett

A photographer based in Columbia, South Carolina, Huiett says his work is “all about capturing the real and raw moments of life through the lens of my camera. I’m inspired by documentary style photography and strive to tell authentic stories through my images. As an African American artist, I also aim to showcase the diversity and beauty of Black culture and experience. My love for travel has taken me all over the world, allowing me to capture stunning landscapes and unique cultural environments.” He continues, “I hope my photography can transport you to a different time and pace and make you see the world in a new light.”

Jackson Campbell

Jackson Campbell is a photographer based in Columbia, South Carolina. His work moves between abstraction and observation, often focusing on atmosphere, form, and texture. His images balance recognizable subjects with mood-driven compositions.

The Jasper photography exhibition Still Here will be on view in the Jasper Alley at Tapp’s throughout July and until the first week of August.

Spotlight on Jasper's Featured Artists in the Jasper Alley at Tapp's in June: Jackie Bobo, Michael Morris Zamora, and Barry J. White

This month, Jasper is featuring three artists in the Jasper Alley at Tapp’s that we want to make sure everyone knows about—Jackie Bobo, Barry J. White, and Michael Morris Zamora.

Artist - Barry J. White

Barry J. White is a Blythewood, SC-based self-taught multi-disciplinary artist whose works center the beauty, strength, and vulnerability of Black men. Guided by intuition, personal experience, and emotion, Barry’s paintings explore themes of identity and self-acceptance through expressive realism and atmospheric color.

Barry’s work has been featured in the following exhibitions For the People, Crowned by the Roots, Jasper Degenerate Arts II, as well as at Gemini Arts, Stormwater Studios, Roc Bottom Studio, and Drummond Studios. His work has been recognized for its depth, honesty, and visual storytelling. 

White says that his exhibition at the Jasper Alley has given me the confidence to start working on more pieces daily. I'm creating a collection I'm naming, I Drew Him. It's a collection of people that I have known over the years that inspire my current artistic expression. My next show is By Any Means, curated by KELA, with the opening reception on Juneteenth at REDUX Studio in Charleston, SC.”

Continuing, White says he is inspired by many local artists including Dre Lopez, Skrilla, Cam Moore, Keith Tolan, Damion Johnson, Sanford Greene, Jahnna Blyden, Ija Monet, and Tyrone Geter, but he really appreciates the work of his show-mate, Jackie Bobo, saying, “I can't look at Jackie's work without thinking about the kindness she extends to the people around her. Before I ever spent time with her artwork, Jackie encouraged me to embrace vulnerability and find the courage to share my own art and show up as my authentic self. That same spirit lives inside her paintings. In her work, what's typically viewed as different or spooky becomes a strength instead of something to hide or be ashamed of. Little Lonely Ghost feels less like sadness and more like an invitation to be seen. Her "Happy Spooky" aesthetic reminds me that belonging isn't about fitting in, it's about showing up as your authentic self. Spending time with her art feels like receiving permission to take up space exactly as you are.”

Artist - Jackie Bobo

Jackie Bobo is the vibrant force behind Bobo to the Max, an art practice and brand that creates emotionally immersive art and experiences inviting people to feel deeply, express fully, and belong as their most vivid selves.

Informed by nearly a decade as a speech-language pathologist—and more than three decades of living at the intersection of queerness, Blackness, and neurodivergence—Bobo approaches painting as its own language, one capable of holding nuance from the playful to the profound.

Through her signature “Happy Spooky” aesthetic—bright, bold colors paired with ghosts, spiders, and other whimsically macabre motifs—her work explores what it means to unmask, authentically connect, and belong. Each piece acts as a symbol of self-acceptance, affirming that belonging doesn’t mean blending in—it means revealing who you already are.

Bobo, who is currently an artist-in-residence with One Columbia for Arts & Culture at the Garage Studio, says she is “in the ideation phase of another immersive experience, but I'm being intentionally tight-lipped about it for now!”

About her show-mate Barry J White, Bobo says, “Barry captures the power, in both strength and tenderness, of Black masculinity in a way that's magnetic. His work makes you feel, in real time, suspended between society's limited understanding of and ability to hold space for Black masculinity, showcased through his daring vulnerability and technical skill.”

 

Artist - Michael Morris Zamora

Michael Morris Zamora was born in Puerto Rico to a South Carolinian father and a Puerto Rican mother. Mostly self-taught, he began creating art at the age of ten, and by fourteen, was painting in oil and acrylic mediums with a tendency toward abstract expressionism.

A chemist, film actor, writer, poet, and drummer, in Puerto Rico Zamora is also a Certified Artisan specializing in wood carving and sculpting, harkening back to his childhood interests in iron sculpting, wood carving, miniature buildings installations, and jewelry-making from natural seeds and seashells. In 1972 he published some of his first poems and stories. In 1980 he published his poetry book, Telarañas (translated, Cobwebs). 

Zamora also taught elementary art and later studied art at the San Juan Art Students League under Professors Rafael Rivera Ortiz (drawing and painting), and Hiram Rosado Poupart (ceramics).

According to Barry J. White, “I've met Michael on several occasions, and what stands out immediately is his warmth. He's a natural storyteller, always ready with a conversation, and he has a genuine enthusiasm that makes people feel welcome. That same sense of curiosity seems to carry into his artwork. Michael's paintings move between dreams, emotions, memory, and abstraction. Two pieces that especially resonate with me are Depression and Dreaming in Green. While very different in mood, both feel deeply human. Depression captures a quiet heaviness and vulnerability, while Dreaming in Green feels expansive, imaginative, and full of possibility. Michael’s paintings don't simply depict a subject; they create space for reflection and emotion. Like the stories he tells from his life experiences, they stay with you long after you've walked away.”

Bobo agrees adding, “Michael's work makes me feel like I've found a visual escape hatch from this reality into a world where my thoughts, galloping as they may be, are supported by his artistry the whole time. His use of color and the integration of various subjects on his canvases invite ease and reflection while maintaining presence—like a daydream.”

Zamora returns the sentiments about both his show-mates. “When I met Jackie for the first time in person at the Jasper Magazine release party a couple of months ago, it was a magical moment. For some reason, we recognized ourselves immediately,” he says. “Since we were notified we were going to be in the June Tapps show together I was touched by the magical vibrance of her creations. Her work and personal energy really synchronized with me and we spent over an hour engaged in a wonderful exchange of ideas and artistic views.”

He continues, “About Barry I can say we connected from the first moment as well.  He is such a humble being with a spiritual aura that you can feel every time you coincide with him on any artistic venue. His sensibility can be felt both on his great artistic expression and his person as well. [Barry is] always ready for a fraternal hug with his contagious smile. I feel so honored by being with both great artists. Thanks to the Jasper Project for this memorable experience.”

The work of all three artist will remain on display at the Jasper Alley at Tapp’s until the end of June when the group photography exhibition, Still Here, is installed. Still Here features the work of Jackson Campbell, Perry McLeod, Nora Williams, Alexander McDonald, Jr., and TaJuan "TJ" Huiett.

Read about showing YOUR work via one of the Jasper Project’s gallery spaces throughout the city and apply today!

 

 

 

 

Thursday Night at the Koger Center Brings You the Opening of Ginny Merritt's Exhibition, the Opening of the Koger Center Project Winners' Exhibition & the Closing of the Late Laura Spong's Show

Artist - Ginny Merritt

When we first saw the work of Ginny Merritt years ago at a Contemporaries exhibition at the CMA, we knew she had something special. That’s why Jasper awarded her the Best in Show prize (2018) and wrote a feature on her in the next issue of Jasper Magazine. In the years since, it’s been such a trip to watch this retired art educator pour herself into her own art, after decades of nurturing the art in her students, and grow and grow and grow.

That’s why we’re excited to welcome Merritt back to the Jasper Nook Gallery at the Koger Center this Thursday night from 5:30 - 7pm.

And we’re even more excited to invite you to her opening reception which will coincide with the Closing Reception for the Koger Center’s beautiful exhibition of the late Laura Spong’s work, as well as their Opening Reception for The Koger Center Project Winners’ Exhibition – all three happening at the same time!


About Ginny Merritt

Ginny Merritt was raised in Denver and settled in South Carolina in 1987. She graduated from the University of Georgie and has two master’s degrees from USC. She studied art education and taught art in public schools for 30 years, also teaching as an adjunct instructor at USC.

Her work is centered on mixed media collages inspired by the stylish women from her grandmother’s day which she recreates using vintage and contemporary papers. She has mounted exhibitions of her work all over town as well as  in Charleston, Lake City, Augusta, Brooklyn, NY, and a solo show at the Etherredge Center Gallery at USC Aiken, SC. Merrett published her book Tall Women in 2024, which offered a collection of ekphrastic poetry based on her art.

Ginny Merritt



About Laura Spong

Laura Spong (1926-2018) is remembered as one of SC’s leading Abstract Expressionist artists. Originally from Nashville, where she graduated cum laude from Vanderbilt University, Spong took her first drawing classes in 1948 before moving to Columbia, SC and studying under Gil Petroff among others. Spong was a favorite of the late Wim Roefs and Eileen Waddell of the former If Art Gallery, Waddell wrote of the artist, “Laura was a genteel Southern woman with a Tennessee accent whose ‘Coming Out’ party as an artist was on her 80th birthday.” Spong died at the age of 92, painting until the end of her days.



About the Koger Center Project Winners’ Exhibition

The Koger Center Project Winners’ Exhibition is a group exhibition in the Gallery at the Koger Center. The exhibit features the winning artists from their 2025 call for art sponsored by the Koger Center: Kate Timbes, Lori Isom, Anna Schumann Byars, Colleen Cannon-Karlos, Max Hardy, and Wilma King.

This opening reception coincides with Third Thursday Art Night featuring Ginny Merett.

About the Winners

Kate Timbes (1st Place) is a South Carolina based interdisciplinary artist whose work investigates the narrative and functions of materiality.  Working primarily in painting, video, and sculpture, she weaves mediums together, carrying objects, paintings, seeds, weavings, and sculptural handmade paper through physical, emotional, and digital landscapes. Timbes contemplates sourcing of resources, rethinking use as an individual effort to engage in a curious ecological practice. Timbes has exhibited her work nationally and internationally, with recent exhibitions at the Richardson Family Art Gallery, Greenville-Spartanburg Airport, the Spartanburg Public Library, and the DIS Student Hub in Copenhagen, Denmark. In addition to her studio practice, Timbes teaches papermaking workshops that have been supported by the Tri-State Sculptors Association and Wofford College. Timbes received her BA in Studio Art from Wofford College in 2023. (Read more about Kate Timbes in the current issue of Jasper Magazine, on newsstands now.)

Lori Isom (2nd Place) Artist Statement: It is fair to say that my life has been quite varied as an artist, and all around creative person. Years of my life were dedicated to working as a professional dancer, singer and actress in New York and Los Angeles, and I’ve had several interesting and fun entrepreneurial pursuits along the way, including owning and operating my own baking business! I am predominantly a self-taught artist, however, I studied illustration in high school, and later fine art and fashion design at Parsons School of Design. I would say that I walk the line between illustrator and fine artist. While I work to tell a story with my art, I also produce paintings that primarily express a particular emotion. Artists like Mary Cassatt, Andrew Wyeth, and John Singer Sargent were ones who greatly influenced my work early on. I suppose that’s how I came to love capturing people.

Anna Byars (Honorable Mention) is an artist based in Columbia, South Carolina. Anna grew up in Lexington, South Carolina, and received a BA in Studio Art and Art History at the College of Charleston. Her work has been shown in exhibitions at the Southern Graphics Conference, Sawtooth Visual Arts Gallery, and the Halsey Institute of Contemporary Art. Anna primarily focuses in printmaking and is currently exploring the idea of transcendence within her work.

Colleen Cannon-Karlos (Honorable Mention) was born in Los Angeles, raised in New York City, and currently resides in Columbia, SC after living in Hawaii for 20 years. Over the years she has worked in a variety of mediums including painting, drawing, photography and ceramics. Conceptually her work is based on quantum physics and ancient metaphysics exploring the illusive abstract nature of reality. Inspiration for her work includes indigenous African, Native American, Asian and Polynesian art forms. (Read more about Colleen Cannon-Karlos in the current issue of Jasper Magazine, on newsstands now.)

Max Hardy (Honorable Mention) Artist Statement: I’ve always loved to draw and paint and make things and have done so since I can remember. When I was in high school I took a few art classes but other than that I’m self- taught. Lately my paintings have been sculptural and deal with illusion in some way. My process is quite slow with visual art; I only produce a handful of pieces a year.

Wilma King (Honorable Mention) endeavors to combine her experiences of living in 11 states (including Alaska) with her educational background into a visual storytelling collaboration through her painting. Her pursuit and passion goes beyond a daily practice of technique and development. She believes that universality — seeking common ground — is what makes art purposeful. She taught public relations, communication studies, advertising design, publication design, and photography for more than 30 years in American universities in Kentucky, Tennessee, New York, Virginia, Texas, and South Carolina, and taught Study abroad courses in Italy several years. She was an associate professor of Public Relations at both Western Kentucky University (Bowling Green, KY) and Rochester Institute of Technology (Henrietta, NY), and served on faculty at Benedict College (Columbia,  SC), where she wrote the curriculum for, and taught the first courses in the college’s now defunct commercial art program; O’More College of Design (Franklin, TN); Texas Southern University (Houston, TX); The Art Institute of Houston (Houston, TX). (Read more about Wilma King in the Fall 2022 issue of Jasper Magazine.)

Art Reception Double Feature with the Jasper Project and the Koger Center

By Emily Moffitt, Visual Arts Editor, Jasper Magazine

The Koger Center for the Arts is excited to bring its patrons two new art exhibits in its second-floor gallery spaces: the Gallery at the Koger Center and The Nook, the latter of which is presented by the Jasper Project.

On April 10, join the Koger Center in celebrating Colin Dodd and Sarah Scruggs for their new art exhibits! There will be a joint opening reception for the two shows that evening from 5:30 – 7:30 p.m. The event is free and open to the public, and complimentary wine and light fare will be available.

Sarah Scruggs is the newest artist to take up residence in the Nook at the Koger Center. Sarah is a South Carolinian painter focusing on oil and watercolor. Her alla prima style is relaxed and playful, with attention to color. Most always, her paintings are a celebration of storms, the ever-changing clouds, flora, and fauna. Many of her materials are hand ground pigments collected from local areas in the pursuit of play. She has sold/exhibited her work at multiple art fairs like Cottontown Art Crawl and the Brandywine Festival in Harrodsburg, KY. Her work will be on display through early May.

Colin Dodd is exhibiting a new body of work in the Gallery at the Koger Center, titled Homage to Ukraine: Big Bavovna and Other Works. The exhibit began on March 24 and is on display through June 7, 2026. Colin Dodd was born in Northumberland and grew up in Newcastle upon Tyne. As a young teenager his interest in art began to develop and he decided to go to art college as soon as he finished high school. He first attended Leicester Polytechnic and then Trent Polytechnic in Nottingham, where he completed an undergraduate degree in fine art. After two visits to the U.S. he moved permanently in 1980. He attended the University of South Carolina and completed a graduate degree in 1984. In the same year, he began teaching at Midlands Tech as an adjunct instructor. This position eventually became full time and he taught classes in drawing, painting, art history, and Film as Art until his retirement in 2018.

Homage to Ukraine Artist Statement:

It’s the artist’s duty to reflect the times in which we live.” – Nina Simone.

This quote struck a chord with me, especially due to personal circumstances. Russia invaded Ukraine on February 24th, 2022, and by coincidence that was the day I had open heart surgery, following a heart attack on February 22nd! I watched the footage on CNN of Russian tanks firing on civilian targets from my hospital bed. I have since followed the war on an almost daily basis, strongly identifying with the cause of the Ukrainian people, and seeing in them a nation standing alone against a tyrant just as Britain did against Hitler’s Germany at the outset of World War II.  Ukraine has managed to survive, against all the odds, for four years.

The imagery from FPV drone footage I found strangely alluring and fascinating, even beautiful, although the results and intended consequences were destruction and death. This dichotomy is what led me to start painting images based on often distorted and grainy images, abstracted to a degree, by the process of recording and transmission. This resulted in a twenty-panel work resembling a bank of monitors, titled Homage to Ukraine: Big Bavovna.   In addition, a triptych dedicated to Ukraine consists of a portrait of a young Ukrainian woman wearing a traditional flower crown, titled Flower of Ukraine.  An image of trench warfare reminiscent of images from the First World War and I borrowed the title We Are Making a New World from Paul Nash who was an official war artist in both world wars. Lastly, an image derived from a video taken in 2023 in the Donetsk region, of a Russian ammo dump explosion, which became known as, Ammo Dump Jesus.

As the war has progressed it seems like it has been largely forgotten about by the news cycle which moves on unrelentingly, but the struggle and the suffering continues for the Ukrainian people.

For more information about the visual arts at the Koger Center, inquiries can be directed to kogercenter@sc.edu. The gallery spaces are available for public viewing Monday-Friday, 9 am – 5 pm, and an hour before any performance in the center.

Announcing The Jasper Alley at Tapp’s With Our Inaugural First Thursday Opening Reception - April 2nd Featuring Jarid Lyfe Brown!

We’re Back!

In service to our mission of finding and programming gallery spaces for Midlands-area artists wherever we can, The Jasper Project is delighted to announce that we are back on Main Street starting on Thursday April 2nd and we’re featuring Jarid Lyfe Brown as our first First Thursday Artist!

That’s right, we’re back! In partnership with our host, the Shoppes at Tapp’s, Jasper will be presenting group and solo shows right on Main Street once again and we couldn’t be happier! Our friends at the Shoppes at Tapp’s have graciously allocated a nice long corridor to the right of the showroom where, starting in April, you’ll find Jasper-curated art from our beloved local artists—and we’re naming it The Jasper Alley at Tapp’s.

We’re so happy to welcome the art of Jarid Lyfe Brown to these welcoming walls!

Jarid Lyfe Brown lives in Gilbert, SC. He was born in 1974 and, as a young artist, earned a perfect score of 5 for the portfolio he entered into an AP art contest at Harvard University. Brown was awarded a scholarship to attend Savannah College of Art and Design in 1992. From 1994 until the present, Brown has mounted multiple shows in locations that ranged from galleries to coffee shops around SC, NC, and Michigan. Brown says, “I paint every day, and complete around 7-10 new paintings per month.” Brown is married and has three children. When he is not painting, he is doing construction work and thinking about what he'll paint next.

For his artist’s statement Brown writes, “All of my hard work is about everyday life. It is hard to predict or explain because I submit myself to create in an unplanned method. I paint from what I hear, learn, experience, opinions, perspectives, joy, hurt, and reactions. It may make sense or not at all, and that is similar to life. I just want to be raw and honest, but not crude. I try to paint directly and literally. I enjoy literature and writing so I apply that to my painting. I also enjoy an attempt to bridge expressionism to realism and I don’t want to be classified as either. I want to be better, different, or more in all of these experiences. I use animals to express mindsets and characteristics of a person.”

We’ll be announcing our full line-up for 2026 soon, but for now, be sure to add The Jasper Alley at Tapp’s to your First Thursday agenda. Stop by to have a beer or a glass of vino, view Jarid’s exhibition, chat with the artist, and bump into all your old and new First Thursday Friends.

We’re back on Main, y’all and we’re so happy to be there!

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Announcing The Jasper Project's 2026 Gallery Schedule

Artist - Patrick Parise

For those of us here at The Jasper Project, one of our most satisfying ongoing projects is the monthly and quarterly rotation of artists and their work through our gallery spaces across town. Through the generosity and hospitality of restaurant owners, leadership at the Koger Center and Harbison Theatre, and the management at the Meridian Building downtown, we have been able to arrange for the showing of hundreds of Midlands area artists over the years. For some of our artists, The Jasper Project has guided them through their very first showing. This is a wonderful thing to have the privilege of experiencing and we appreciate our artists trusting us with this honor. And once an artist has shown their work with us, it seems we always become dear friends with both them and their entourage, whether it be family members, longtime supporters, or old friends who come out to cheer them on. Yes, programming, promoting, and handling all the paperwork involved in putting art on walls about town is time-consuming and arduous work. But it’s all worth it when we see the joy and pride on the faces of artists once their exhibition is open and on view.

For 2026, our team has assembled another 40+ individual artists who will exhibit their work in our designated galleries. (This does not include the visual artists we work with in our one-off projects, such as Degenerate Art II and the Peter Lenzo retrospective, coming up this spring at Gemini Arts and Stormwater respectively.)

Without further ado, we are delighted to announce The Jasper Project’s 2026 schedule of exhibiting artists!

Artist- Sonya Diimmler

The Nook Gallery at The Koger Center for Arts

January - Najee Reese

February - Easel Cathedral

March - Cait Maloney

April - Sarah Scruggs

May - Kathryn Morganelli

June - Ginny Merett

July - Sonya Diimmler

August - Isaac Udogwu

September - Patrick Parise

October - Keshoan Johnson

November thru December - K Wayne Thornley


Artist - Harry McFadden

Motor Supply Co. Bistro

February - Harry McFadden

April - Thomas Crouch

July - Katie Chandler

October - Kelley Pettibone


Artist - Clayton King

Jasper’s Tiny Gallery

January - Clayton King

February - Amy Kuenzie

March - Becci Robbins

April - Lucy Bailey

May - Tracey Seibert

June - Betsy Halford

July - Sarah Hilton

August -  Faith Mathis 

September - Jana Willis

October - Wendy Diaz (Inti Eclectic)

November - Megan Tapley 

December - TBD

Jasper’s Tiny Gallery, begun in 2019, is a virtual gallery open 24/7 where you can shop online at your convenience. Tiny Gallery art cannot be larger than 15” in any dimension and must be priced les than $250, with the majority of pieces in the less than $100 range. We developed Jasper’s Tiny Gallery as an entry level space for new collectors and working folks who want to build an art collection on an artist’s budget. By limiting the size of the art we are often able to program some of the area’s most high profile artists who create smaller, more affordable work specifically for this gallery.


Artist - Wilma Ruth King

Harbison Theatre Gallery

Spring - Walker Canada

Fall - Wilma Ruth King


Artist - Lucas Sams

Sound Bites Eatery*

January - Anna Herrera

February - Anna Herrera

March - Lucas Sams*

April - Jessica Ream*

May - Barry White*

June - Michael Morris*

July - JJ Burton*

August - Terri Birthday Show

September - Jackie Bobo*

October - Bonita Strickland*

November - Cam Moore*

December - Emily Moffitt*

*Jasper was disappointed to learn that our gracious host at Sound Bites Eatery has made the difficult decision to close their doors effective February 6, 2026. We can’t thank Terri Mac and her team enough for making all of us at Jasper, and all the artists we represent, feel so at home (and well-fed!) since the very beginning. While we all mourn the loss of this home-base gathering space for artists and arts lovers, we are delighted to celebrate our final artist on the Jasper wall who, coincidentally, is Anna Herrera, the owner’s daughter and a fine artist! (Ironically, we had scheduled Anna’s exhibition as part of the 2026 lineup prior to hearing the news that she would be our final First Thursday artist at Sound Bites Eatery.

We are currently in search of other public walls on which we can show the fully-programmed 2026 roster of Sound Bites artists, so we are announcing that roster with our fingers crossed that the proprietors of a future space will make themselves known. We’d love to hear from you!

** The Jasper Gallery Sidewalk Gallery in the windows of the Meridian Building downtown is currently being developed. We look forward Making the announcement of our first artist roster very soon!


Last Week for Jasper's November Tiny Gallery Featured Artist YYUSRI

Thinking about a Christmas present for the art lover in your circle? Check out the work of YYUSRI, Jasper’s featured Tiny Gallery artist for November. But don’t wait too long! YYUSRI’s art is only up for one more week. And the best part? You can grab this art up without ever having to leave your house. Remember — Art from Columbia’s LOCAL ARTISTS make some of the best presents you’ll ever find!

Read more about YYSURI below —

In the artist’s own words —

I’m based in Columbia, SC, but my home is where the art is. I create to tell stories. As a storyteller, I’m drawn to many forms of expression. It may look like I wear many hats, but it’s really one hat with a very wide brim. Whether I’m illustrating, painting, animating, or producing music, I’m doing the same thing; telling stories.

Stories come in countless forms: pictures, comics, songs, films, or even a voice by the campfire. Growing up, I was captivated by how stories could transport and transform us, revealing new possibilities. Through my work, I aim to show (and teach) that what you can imagine, you can create.

As a full-time artist, every artwork that finds a home brings me closer to realizing my dream project: Our Sun is a Star, an animated coming-of-age story about loss, healing, and escape.

To purchase any of these pieces (and many more not pictured) visit Jasper’s Tiny Gallery as easily as clicking here!

Last Week to Enjoy the Art of JUDY MAPLES - Jasper's Featured Artist at Sound Bites Eatery

This is the last week to check out the art of Judy Maples in the Jasper gallery space at Sound Bites Eatery, just a block off Main Street on Sumter. Maples artworks are beautiful abstractions created using a lovely color palette that almost seems to jump off the walls.

Below, we share the artist’s own words as she reflects on her paintings.

 

What do these things have in common: soil, puff pastry, music, and my abstract paintings?

Layers.

My painting process is based on instinct, intuition, and emotion. The layers in my abstracts reflect my life experiences and the stories I carry with me. When I start a new canvas, I don’t have a clear plan or a specific image in mind. I allow the painting to evolve naturally, letting each layer guide me to the next. This approach allows me to be fully present in the moment, to respond to the colors and textures as they emerge, and to create something that feels authentic.

The first layer often consists of random marks and strokes of bold colors applied with a sense of freedom and spontaneity. Then I add layers and textures that overlap to create depth and complexity. One of my favorite techniques is to apply a layer of paint and then scrape most of it away, revealing glimpses of the layers beneath. As I add layers, I refine the composition to add depth, complexity, and emotion.

My abstract paintings continue to evolve in the eye of the viewer. Each person sees something different, finds their own meaning in the layers, and adds their own story to the painting. Only then is the painting finished.

My abstracts, with their many layers and textures, have depth and a sense of history, leaving the viewer to think, “I wonder what’s under that top layer?”

 

Maples’ work will remain up for viewing through Saturday morning, November 29th.

K. Wayne Thornley's A GATHERING OF CHAIRS at Jasper's Tiny Gallery Site is Selling Quickly!

K. Wayne Thornley is the kind of visual artist who keeps his patrons on their toes, never knowing what the innovative master-level artist will create next. His latest collection, A Gathering of Chairs, featured this month in the Jasper Project’s Tiny Gallery, is a perfect example. Comprised of nine unique depictions of chairs ranging in style from the beautiful chintz boudoir chairs to the functional and sturdy desk or dining chairs, and several in-between styles, this online exhibition meets the requirements of the Tiny Gallery series (pieces can be any medium but must be under 15” x 15” and under $200) and patrons are grabbing these little beauties fast!

Thornley is a mixed media artist whose work spans several media categories, but he spends most of his creative time as a painter, an assemblage artist, and a wire wrangler. His work has been juried into local, state, and national exhibitions across the U.S.

When not at his real job, Thornley works from his home studio in Columbia, SC. Recently, he has been teaching a series of project-based creativity classes, the ARTMAKERS BOOTCAMP series, with art partner Lucy Bailey.


Thornley says, “My work deals largely with the life-shaping power of memory, memory loss, and memory-imbued objects that ultimately become someone else’s detritus.”

This is my second time to be invited to show work in the Jasper Project Tiny Gallery. For me, it is an opportunity to do work slightly outside my normal themes. I’ve been wanting to do a series of chair paintings, so, using my usual materials and techniques, I’ve created these small works, a limited series I am calling “A Gathering of Chairs.” In the same way found or collected objects carry their history with them, chairs, whether heirlooms or institutional furnishings, reflect their own history through style, usage, ownership, and service. My hope is that one of these chairs sparks the viewer’s memory of a time, a relative, a place, or a feeling from their own collection of life experiences.

Thornley’s A Gathering of Chairs will be available for purchase online at Jasper’s Tiny Gallery site through September 30, 2025.

Visit the collection here.

What’s Going on at the Koger Center? Free Low-Cost Events Next Week & Jasper is Playing a Part!

The Koger Center is stacked with a wide array of free and low-cost events and happenings throughout the month of September! The first full work week of the month has plenty going on, so check out what they have to offer.

On Monday, September 8, we are co-hosting a free artist talk with Lori Isom in the Nook, where her artwork is currently on display. The Nook, for anyone who has not had the chance to check it out, is a gallery space located on the second floor of the Koger Center, adjacent to the Gallery at the Koger Center space, that is programmed by the Jasper Project. The talk will last from 6 – 7 p.m. All artwork in Lori’s exhibit is available for purchase.

On Wednesday, September 10, Preach Jacobs will host his second SoulHaus Session in the Gallery at the Koger Center. After the sell-out success of the first session, Preach is returning and this time, bringing renowned chef Amethyst Ganaway and artist Dogon Krigga in for a conversation. Tickets are available for purchase on EventBrite; doors open with a vinyl spinning session at 5 p.m., and the talk begins at 6 p.m.

The evening of Friday the 12th kicks off with another free concert in the “Koger Center Presents: Live Outside” series. Starting at 5 p.m., Charleston-based act She Returns from War will perform, with a to-be-determined opening act accompanying the evening. Hailing from the historically rich city of Charleston, South Carolina, She Returns from War is defining what it means to not only live in the modern south, but to be a trans woman and artist within this landscape. The full Live Outside series runs on Fridays in September and October; check out the whole series on the Koger Center website here. If the weather turns stormy, the concert will still happen, just inside on the Koger Center’s second floor lobby instead!

And mark your calendars for later this month when Jasper welcomes Photo-artist Jeff Amberg to the Nook Gallery —

Artist Talk with LORI ISOM - Jasper's Featured Artist for August at The Nook - FREE

By Emily Moffitt

The Koger Center for the Arts and the Jasper Project are excited to host Lori Isom for a free artist talk on September 8, from 6-7 p.m. The talk will take place in the Nook on the second floor of the Koger Center, where the audience will be surrounded by Lori’s captivating artwork as she discusses her artistic practices and the motivation behind her paintings. If you missed out on Lori’s opening reception, this is the perfect opportunity to learn more about her as an artist and engage with the exhibit!

Outside of the artist talk, the Nook is available for viewing at the Koger Center from 9 a.m. - 5 p.m., Monday through Friday, and an hour before shows during the weekends.

Lori’s Artist Statement:

“It is fair to say that my life has been quite varied as an artist, and all around creative person. Years of my life were dedicated to working as a professional dancer, singer and actress in New York and Los Angeles, and I’ve had several interesting and fun entrepreneurial pursuits along the way, including owning and operating my own baking business! I am predominantly a self-taught artist, however, I studied illustration in high school, and later fine art and fashion design at Parsons School of Design.

I would say that I walk the line between illustrator and fine artist. While I work to tell a story with my art, I also produce paintings that primarily express a particular emotion. Artists like Mary Cassatt, Andrew Wyeth, and John Singer Sargent were ones who greatly influenced my work early on. I suppose that’s how I came to love capturing people.”

NEW OPPORTUNITY: First Thursday Art Walk with Jasper's Keith Tolen

The Jasper Project announces a new addition to our First Thursday offerings. Yes, we’re still bringing our monthly First Thursday exhibition to Sound Bites Eatery, but we’re also offering a new First Thursday Art Walk led by Jasper Project board vice president and distinguished artist and arts educator, Keith Tolen!

For August, meet Keith Tolen in front of Stoners Pizza in the Arcade mall at 5:30 for a brief stroll to our sidewalk gallery at the Meridian Building on the corner of Sumter and Washington Streets. The gallery features work by Sharon Licata, Perry McLeod, and Adam Corbett.

Keith Tolen is a lifelong native of South Carolina who grew up in Batesburg. He attended SC State University and received a Bachelors in art education. He then earned a masters in education from Francis Marion University. He taught art at Camden Middle School for 30 years, retiring in 2017. Tolen has worked creating designs in photography, drawing, and painting for the past forty years and continues to do so.

Adam Corbett is a multi-instrumentalist, singer-songwriter and visual artist from Lexington, South Carolina. His work is often whimsical, comes with a punchline, or fun story, and his subjects include wildlife and made up characters. He likes to experiment with various mediums in a variety of formats focusing always on exploration, play, and following his muse.

Sharon Collings Licata is a Sculptor/Photographer & Instructor, Shamanic Practitioner, Sand a member of the faculty for SC Faculty for Foundation For Shamanic Studies.

Perry McLeod is a retired high school teacher, a dad, and a photographer. Perry says, “Sports, Concerts, events, and just about anything else I can point a camera at. I love photography! Every day is a new adventure and I just want to capture the moments that will make people stop and think. Make people want to make a change. Make people smile.”

The event is free and everyone is welcome!

10 More Days to See Judy Bolton Jarrett's Art at Sound Bites Eatery in Downtown Columbia

There’s one more week to catch the art of Judy Bolton Jarrett at Sound Bites Eatery, 1425 Sumter Street, though the good folks at Sound Bites will be sorry to see Jarrett’s beautiful work leave their walls.

A household name in the greater Chapin area, Jarrett opened her own gallery space in 1990 and, on June 1, 2025, the artist celebrated the 35th anniversary of Art Can Studio at 108 Beaufort Street in downtown Chapin. Having served as a high school English teacher for 21 years prior to becoming a professional artist, Jarrett sees the title as her second chapter of life. “My training came from workshops, mostly in watercolor, with local and national instructors,” Jarrett says. “But the experience of picking up a brush and practicing consistently generated a style that was recognizable as mine. As I progressed in confidence, I eventually turned from watercolor into water media, gradually using acrylics and mixed media as my mediums.”

A graduate of Presbyterian College, Jarrett went on to become a juried signature member of the South Carolina Watermedia Society and the Georgia National Watercolor Society. While the artist has abbreviated studio hours of late—Art Can Studio is open on Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays, and all other times by appointment only—she still participates in the occasional juried art exhibitions in SC, Georgia, and Tennessee.

Jarrett’s current show at Sound Bites, “Small Works with Large Impact,” is a collection of acrylic and mixed media paintings that the artist says, “represent my love of spontaneity in both color and style, from impressionism to contemporary interpretations. Texture and color are significant elements in every painting. Mixed media works incorporate violin, clock parts, piano hammers, and words.”

Jarrett’s Sound Bites exhibition will be up until the morning of Saturday August 2nd, but if you miss the show, find Jarrett and her work at Art Can Studio in downtown Chapin and visit her website 24/7 to keep up with all this active and still-getting-it-done octogenarian artist is up to!

And mark your calendars for August - October 2026 when Jarrett celebrates her 85th birthday with a solo show at the Botanical Garden at UGA!

Jasper Welcomes Jessica Ream to Our 24/7 Tiny Gallery

Tiny Gallery is a virtual gallery that gives artists an opportunity to show a selection of smaller pieces offered at affordable price points attractive to beginning collectors and patrons with smaller budgets. Pieces can be any medium but must be under 15” x 15” and under $200, with no more than 50% of works being above $100; artists show around 15-25 pieces.

Artists are featured monthly with a solo show for all months but December, which is an ornament show collaboration with Midlands Clay. This gallery runs via the Jasper website, so patrons have access to the art 24/7

For July 2025 we welcome Jessica Ream to our Tiny Gallery.

Jessica Ream was born in Columbus, Ohio early in the year 1990, but was raised in Carolina suburbia. She attended Savannah College of Art and Design where she graduated with honors and a BFA in Painting. A jack-of-all trades artist, she
incorporates her knowledge of painting, photography, print, sewing and sculpture into her mixed media, abstract pieces.

In recent years, she has rediscovered her love of handbinding books. While mainly self taught, she was first introduced to the world of bookbinding in a workshop she attended while studying abroad. Her handbound journals are made from a mix of traditional materials and rebound, vintage books.

After spending the time in the High Rockies of Colorado, she and her husband have returned to their southeastern, coastal origins, where they reside with their son and newborn daughter.


Artist Statement

I seek emotional catharsis.

My work is a visual expulsion of my intimate ruminations. Each piece is a visual confession, infused with an unbridled honesty I find paradoxically terrifying and liberating.

I am a painter, a photographer, a printmaker and a seamstress. I am a sculptor and a habitual collector of discarded objects. I am process driven; the physicality of the material capturing my natural curiosity. This child like act of discovery and alteration allows me to speak about what I cannot say audibly and drives me to create.

Free Artist Talk with Jakeem Da Dream at the Koger Center - July 1st from 6 - 7 pm

Due to the success of our latest Third Thursday Art Night with Jakeem Da Dream, the artist is coming back to the Koger Center on July 1 to give a free artist talk! Join the Jasper Project on Tuesday from 6 to 7 p.m. to learn more about the artist, Afrofuturism, and what drives Da Dream to create.

Prints of Jakeem Da Dream’s art will be for sale along with all pieces included in the exhibit. Join us in the Nook for an exclusive educational opportunity that is not to be missed!

Follow Jakeem Da Dream (Dominique Hodge) on the following channels:

Instagram: @dadreamdesigns
Facebook: Da Dream Designs

Jasper's NOOK GALLERY at the Koger Center Welcomes Dominique Hodge - aka Jakeem Da Dream TONIGHT!

The next artist in our Third Thursday lineup is Dominique Hodge, also known as Jakeem Da Dream. Hodge’s opening reception is on Thursday, June 19, from 5:30 – 7 p.m. at the Koger Center for the Arts. The reception is free and open to the public and precedes Live in the Lobby Jazz: Rod Foster and Company featuring Brittany Turnipseed.

Born and raised in Sumter, South Carolina, Dominique Hodge, known artistically as “Jakeem Da Dream” is an Afrofuturistic artist. Upon graduating from high school he furthered his artistic knowledge by attending the Art Institutes, which exposed him to a larger world of art. Actively working in the community, instructing art classes and paint-and-sip events through local art studios and galleries. He is a member of the Sumter Artists Guild as well as the Sumter Gallery of Art in which he sits on the board. His work has won an honorable mention at the 2019 Sumter Artist Guild Exhibition. Aside from working on canvas, he has also completed several mural projects within local schools and businesses. He has been working with the Auntie Karen Foundation through its Artpreneur program since 2018, where he has been providing quality art education to South Carolina youth. He is currently an active member of Roc Bottom Studios, through which he also works with Gemini Arts.

Artist Statement:

“I am an Afrofuturist artist. My work, whether it be hand drawn illustrations, acrylic paintings, or intricate murals all reflect the heart, mind, and soul of black people. I view artists as the true alchemists, and the process of creating the true alchemy. Being capable of transmuting pain, suffering, and joy into a physical manifestation is pure magic. Being able to transmute the unseen world, viewed through the conscience of the black experience into works of visual art that transcends time and space is a real-world superpower. To achieve this goal, I draw from a plethora of sources such as mythology, religion, history, astrology, astronomy, esoteric and hermetic philosophy.”

The Jasper Project Welcomes Colton Giles to Our Online Tiny Gallery through May

Harvest Fae

The Jasper Project is happy to welcome artist Colton Giles to our 24/7 online Tiny Gallery.

Colton Giles grew up in Lexington, SC, where he says, “Art has always been a part of my life, as far as I can remember. It was always present and appreciated. My parents have always said that I started drawing as soon as I could hold a crayon, and they fully encouraged any artistic pursuits throughout my childhood. I've always gathered inspiration from book illustrations, video game art, movies, TV, music, nature, and literature.” 

Primarily self-taught, Giles focuses on multiple mediums for expressing his talents. “I can hardly focus on just one. I tend to love working in monochrome, so I trend towards pen and ink, graphite, charcoal, and most recently, linoleum relief printing. … I have really loved working with relief prints because I enjoy the process itself. It starts with a sketch that evolves into a precise final draft. The drawing is mirrored and transferred to the linoleum block, then carved. Once the carving is complete, I can begin making prints. After making a limited run of prints, I usually destroy the linoleum block,” the artist explains.

Giles says that “It’s hard to answer a question regarding my style, as I feel I am constantly searching for it! I would say I lean towards a more graphic and illustrative style. Working in monochrome as often as I do, contrast and negative space are key in describing shapes and form.” He goes on to say that “99% of my work is thematically rooted in fantasy, mythology, and folklore. It has always been what I enjoy creating the most. These themes translate very well into the mediums I work in, as they’ve been chronicled in similar fashions for hundreds, if not thousands of years.”

“All of the pieces for this show are personal works that I’ve done over the last few years,” Giles says. “My favorite is probably Harvest Fae. This is a digital piece, but it was created just like a physical pen & ink piece would have been. I think the total tally of pen strokes came to over 78,000 when it was all said and done! My other favorites are Duskwraith, The Betrayal of Morgan le Fay, and Keeper of the White Flame. I hope that through the gallery; people can find connections to the arcane and esoteric themes that I find so alluring. I create art for myself, but it brings me joy when others can find value in my creations and their themes.”

Duskwraith

Giles has participated in several local markets and shown work at the South Carolina State Fair. Duskwraith won 2nd place in the SC State Fair’s Amateur Digital Art Division in 2023. He says his favorite recent experience as an artist was, “running a booth at the 2024 Y’all-Mart Halloween Market and being blown away at the amount of support and love shown to not only me and my work, but all the artists and booths around me. It was really special to celebrate local artists alongside so many others. Maybe this hermit should get out a little more.” 

In addition to Jasper’s Tiny Gallery, Giles’ work can be found on Cara, Instagram, and Bluesky as heathenrelic as well as on TikTok as heathen_relic. His linktree has all of the above at linktr.ee/colku