McNair's vision celebrates 40 years

Forty years ago, many people thought a state as poor as South Carolina didn't need to spend taxpayers' money on an agency that dealt with something as esoteric as the arts.

But the late Gov. Robert E. McNair thought differently.

Eager to make cultural and artistic activities more widely available to all residents of the state and cognizant of the arts impact on economic development efforts, McNair signed legislation to create the S.C. Arts Commission on June 7, 1967.

At the time, McNair said, it was his vision that the arts "continue to grow and play an ever more significant part in the welfare and educational experiences of our citizens."

"One of Gov. McNair's visionary objectives was to ensure a high quality of life and economic vitality for all South Carolinians," says Bill Youngblood, who has been active in promoting public education throughout the state and is managing shareholder of the McNair Law Firm. "The members of his law firm are truly pleased to join in celebrating the tremendous impact that his foresight had so many years ago. Not only do the arts thrive in South Carolina today, but they continue to have a significant positive influence on our state's expanding economy."

McNair died Nov. 17 at age 83.

Starting in a tiny office with only a handful of employees and a budget of $89,000, the arts commission now has 30 employees with a $5.6 million budget and occupies a spacious building at Barnwell and Gervais streets in Columbia.

With programs such as Poetry-in-the-Schools and Music-in-the-Schools, the agency organized outreach programs especially to rural areas where young people were not given the chance to attend plays, music and dance concerts. Artists could be paid by the state for doing what they loved and also helping promote arts education. The agency now provides grants and leadership initiatives in three areas: arts education, community arts development and artist development.

After 15 years, the arts commission was considered a model for other states to follow.

A study conducted in 2002 and updated in 2006 by the University of South Carolina's Moore School of Business found that South Carolina's arts industry produces nearly $2.4 billion in economic output annually and the arts industry supports nearly 31,000 jobs throughout the state.

"The arts commission helps fuel this arts industry by providing funding and support to South Carolina artists, arts organizations and communities," says Barbara Nwokike, a member of the arts commission board of directors.

She adds, "Since 1967, the arts commission has awarded almost $50 million in grants, and nearly $7.5 million of that total has benefited Charleston County."

In celebrating its 40th anniversary and to pay special tribute to McNair, the arts commission will welcome former board members and others who have shaped the agency's history to a celebration to be sponsored by the S.C. Arts Foundation at 7 p.m. May 7 at the Columbia Museum of Art at Main and Hampton streets.

The event will include food, entertainment and a silent auction of artworks by 40 of South Carolina's most celebrated artists who have been recognized through programs such as the State Art Collection, Artist Fellowships and special exhibitions. From the Lowcountry are Tom Boozer, Marguerite Middleton, Dorothy Netherland, Joe Walters, Bruno Civitico, Mary Edna Fraser and West Fraser.

Tickets are $75 and may be purchased by calling 803-734-8696 or at www.southcarolinaarts.com.

'The Venice Experience'

Inspired by a two-week stay in the lively Cannaregio district of Venice, Italy, local artist Jennifer Black will present a new collection of her oil paintings starting Friday at the Hamlet Fine Art Gallery in an exhibit titled "The Venice Experience."

Black says her Venice apartment faced a narrow street from where the relaxing sounds of daily Venetian street life floated up into her living room. Lulled by the sounds, she says, "I spent the afternoons painting by an open window."

The subjects of her paintings range from market vegetables to street scenes and tableaux of canals with gondolas, taking the viewer on a tour of the city that is considered so unique that there is a well-known saying: "See Venice, and die."

Black, who has lived in Charleston for 30 years, with several years spent in Spain, works in her home studio on the Ashley River marsh while her husband, Charlie Black, a woodturner, works in his adjacent studio.

Black's artwork is in private and public collections all over the nation and overseas.

A public opening reception will be held 5-8 p.m. Friday at the gallery, 7 Broad St.

'For You, I Adore'

Julie Goldstein's woodblock prints, which depict confident, strong, grounded women, and which are often autobiographical, are on exhibit starting Friday at the Plum Elements gallery, 161 1/2 King St.

The prints often feature surfers, reflecting the fact that Goldstein is a year-round surfer off Montauk, Long Island. This will be the artist's first show in Charleston, but she has exhibited in museums and galleries in New York, Los Angeles, Australia, Brazil and Japan.

She has a Bachelor of Fine Arts from the University of Connecticut and a master's degree from the Columbia University Teachers College in New York. Goldstein lives and works on Long Beach Island, a barrier island off the New Jersey coast.

When traveling, it is not uncommon for the artist to carry a block of pine wood in her bag so she can sketch what she sees. Then, using paper and fabric, she mixes lithographic and woodcut printmaking techniques with sewing, embroidery and other traditional crafts, resulting in what she describes as a contemporary hybrid-style.

"For You I Adore" runs through July 6 at Plum Elements.

Starlight Pops

First Federal's Starlight Pops concert performed by the Charleston Symphony Orchestra and conducted by David Stahl will take place at 7:30 p.m. Saturday at Boone Hall Plantation in Mount Pleasant.

Those who attend are asked to bring picnics, coolers and blankets or beach chairs for the outdoor concert, where concessions will be available for purchase.

Tickets are $20 for adults and $10 for children, cash only, at the gate. Gates open at 4 p.m. for tours.

Reach Dottie Ashley at 937-5704 or dashley@postandcourier.com.