AiPP - Starkville Sightings

The Starkville Area Arts Council is excited to announce the next exhibit in the Art in Public Places (AiPP) series, our first six month exhibit titled "Starkville SIghtings."

The hybrid exhibit will be on display from February 21 – August 7, 2023, in the lobby of the Greater Starkville Development Partnership in Downtown Starkville and online on the SAAC website (starkvillearts.net/creativeeconomy).

Please join us for an Opening Reception on April 11 at 5:30 pm in the GSDP Lobby (200 E Main St) to celebrate this exhibit. See you there!

Works may be for sale. If you are interested in purchasing any of these works, please continue reading below.

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About the Exhibit

Starkville Sightings is an exhibition highlighting scenes & people from our vibrant town. The photography, printmaking, & paintings that make up this show are created by 13 different local artists. From Cotton District staples to classic Mississippi State University buildings to Main Street scenes, the viewer will get a sense of why so many people love to call Starkville home.

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​Works on display in-person until August 7, 2023.

Hover or click on images below to view title, medium, and pricing. Click image to view fullscreen.
Please CALL OR EMAIL SAAC (info at bottom of this page) if interested in purchasing available works.

John Bateman

John W. Bateman writes and looks for stories from the Deep South. His work has appeared in places like The New Southern Fugitives, The Chicago Tribune, Electric Literature, Facing South, The Santa Fe Writers Project Quarterly, and on the silver screen. He has a secret addiction to glitter and, contrary to his southern roots, does NOT like sweet tea. His first novel, Who Killed Buster Sparkle? (Unsolicited Press) was a 2020 Nominee in Fiction by the Mississippi Institute of Arts & Letters and recipient of the 2019 Screencraft Cinematic Book Award.

John Bateman
Starkville, Mississippi
Image text/visual poetry
11” x 14”
$125

"The work manipulates the letters in the name "Starkville." It's an abstract representation of what Mayor Dan Camp called "the dog bone": the cluster around City Hall at one end and the Cotton District at the other. The work plays with genre and form: where does writing end and image begin? Do we call hieroglyphics "writing" bc we know their translation? Is an emoji a text or picture? Maybe nothing is so binary."

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Paul Buckley

Paul was raised in captivity in rural Oktibbeha County. Before he escaped, he had never been in an art gallery or museum. Paul quickly developed a chameleonic, ostentatious, pretentiousness that seemed to exist without reason or accountability, giving him new myths to live by. Paul redefined the meaning of Primitive Random Abstract Art. He has pushed the boundaries of modern methodology into a particular and discreet element separated by biology, mythology, inbreeding and confusion. Paul remains like a distant star whose light has not yet reached the earth.

Paul Buckley
Beach Ball Floating on Eckie’s Pond
Photography, digitally altered
20” x 28”
$300

"This is a photograph that I took on Eckie's Pond and digitally manipulated it to create my own unique design."

Paul Buckley
Chapel of Memories Redesign
Photography, digitally altered
19” x 27”
$300

"This is a photograph taken inside the Chapel of Memories that I digitally manipulated to create my own unique design."

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Scott Burris

Scott Burris is an amateur photographer that focuses on architecture, landscape and wildlife photography. Scott’s work explores every day life using the vintage medium of film. His works are characterized by the use of everyday objects in an atmosphere of middle-class mentality in which recognition plays an important role. His first introduction to photography came to him as an adolescent when he was given a camera for Christmas. Since then, the majority of his training in the basics of photography has come about through experimentation and self-study. Scott lives in Starkville with his wife Breanna, their dog Annabelle and rabbit Olive.

Scott Burris
Hail State!
Photography
10” x 12”
$75

"The term "Hail State" has not only become synonymous with Mississippi State University, but with the City of Starkville as well. From one side of town to the other, those words can be seen on every business window and sign and heard on the sidewalk. We are proud of our Bulldogs here, and we show it by yelling "Hail State!"

Scott Burris
Swalm Hall
Photography
10” x 12”
$75

"As one of the most recognizable buildings on the campus of Mississippi State University, Swalm Hall has always been a place for visitors to gather for a photograph to commemorate their visit to Starkville. Built to mirror the historical Lee Hall, it uses original details from 1905 but resulting with a modern building, bridging the gap from history to modernity."

Scott Burris
Harned Hall
Photography
10” x 12”
$75

"Constructed in 1921, Harned Hall is an architecturally and historically significant structure to both the campus of Mississippi State University and to the City of Starkville. When I think about Starkville, I think about the beautiful architecture both around the city as well as on the campus, and Harned Hall is definitely a great example of that."

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Laurie Burton

Laurie Burton is a local artist working in multiple media, her artwork includes sculpting with mixed media and found objects, landscape and surreal painting, and occasional furniture making. With a business degree and minor in art from MSU, she is largely self-taught, and finds that she enjoys the challenges of working with different mediums and exploring new concepts and ideas.  Laurie has participated in many local and statewide shows, she is a former SAAC President and board member, a co-founder of the SAAC’s annual Art in the Park event for children, and is a strong advocate for the arts.    Laurie retired from her corporate position as Costing Manager in 2021 and now devotes herself fully to art and living the life of a creative person. Find Laurie on social media to learn more.

Website:  www.laurieburtonart.com
e-mail:  laurieburtonart@gmail.com

Laurie Burton
Walk to Class
Acrylic
11” x 14”
$250

"Walking to Class is a view of the Industrial Education Building on the MSU campus based on a photo I took several years ago.   Even though I didn't attend class in the building, I always liked the looks of it, and walked past it hundreds of times as a student.  The large pine trees in the front add a nice cotntrasting color to the  brick and provide a dappled shade pattern on the walkway."

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Casey Cooper

Casey was born and raised in the South surround by nature, art, and outdoor experiences with her loving family.  Originally from the Hattiesburg area, Casey graduated with her bachelor's degree in Biological Sciences at the University of Southern Mississippi. Casey enjoys expressing her love of nature throughout her paintings.

Casey Cooper
Dusk Over State
Acrylic
11” x 14”
$50

"Mother nature always paints Mississippi State a perfect backdrop for its dusk silhouette. Starkville's sunsets are always a beautiful sight that can't be forgotten."

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Jacob Crook

“As an artist I have always felt my task is not to create meaning, but to charge the air so that meaning can occur.” – Todd Hido

The quality of light cast into a space has the potential to bring poetry to the prosaic, magic to the mundane, and beauty to the banal. The light spilling through these nocturnal landscapes and vacant interiors serves as a sort of spotlight, transforming the scenes into empty stage sets either soon to be entered or perhaps long abandoned, suggesting the possibility of untold narratives that are just out of reach. My intent is not to tell a story directly, but to set the stage in such a way that viewers are compelled to consider the moments before and after the one presented based on their own associations with the imagery.

Jacob Crook
Nightrise II
Printmaking
22” x 19”
$700

"Alleyway on Lafayette St."

Jacob Crook
Nightrise III
Printmaking
22” x 19”
$600

"Alleyway leading to "The Guest Room"

Jacob Crook
Nightrise IV
Printmaking
22” x 19”
$600

"Alleyway downtown next to the police dept"

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Walter Diehl

Walter J. Diehl is an avid world traveler and amateur photographer.  He hopes that his photography provides viewers both a glimpse into those places that he has been privileged to visit and inspires them to travel on their own to experience the cultures and beauty of new places.  Diehl does not try to be the typical travel photographer, and he probably breaks most of the ‘rules’ of travel photography.  Rather, he is a traveler first who tries to take the most inspiring photographs that he can under the conditions that exist at the time.  His travel habits rarely allow him to sit in one place very long or take advantage of the best light for chosen scenes or subjects.  Depending on the trip, he may focus on photographing nature, architecture, and/or culture.  In his world, scenes are rarely perfect, and so he is constantly trying to improve on how he deals with this reality.  Diehl enjoys the reactions of people viewing his photographs.  In an admittedly selfish sense, their reactions allow him to enjoy his travels all over again.  But only for a while, because now he is already thinking about how to photograph his next trip(s).

Walter Diehl
Reflecting on Starkville (SCT from Occasions)
Photography
15” x 21”
$150

"My series, Reflecting on Starkville, explores iconic structures in Starkville seen through reflections in windows or doorways of opposing buildings.  FYI, unlike other images in this series, one could never actually see this image from any point of view in town."

Walter Diehl
Reflecting on Starkville (Cotton District Fountain from BIN 612)
Photography
15” x 21”
$150

"My series, Reflecting on Starkville, explores iconic structures in Starkville seen through reflections in windows or doorways of opposing buildings."

Walter Diehl
Reflecting on Starkville (Oktibbeha County Courthouse from Restaurant Tyler)
Photography
15” x 21”
$150

"My series, Reflecting on Starkville, explores iconic structures in Starkville seen through reflections in windows or doorways of opposing buildings. "

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JC Long

JC has carried a camera most of his adult life. Photography allows him to deepen and develop his understanding of the world around him and of himself. The act and ritual of photographing restores calm within him, strengthens his heart with the practice of kindness amid chaos, improves the quality of his human relationships and role in the community, and relieves anxiety through the simple act of walking and observing color. His favorite subject to photograph is.. people, and his inspiration is empowering others to see themselves in healthy ways that challenge the status quo. His goal is to redefine the notion of physical beauty in America that has led so many people to believe they aren't good enough, to empower one human at a time to see themselves with new admiration, self-respect, and confidence.

https://www.jjj-engineering.com/photography

JC Long
Mr. Richard
Photography
8” x 10” x 2”
$77

"Mr. Richard gave me his permission to take his portrait. I then slipped him a $50 bill as thanks. Mr. Richard lived his entire life from birth to death in Starkville, MS. He loved this town, even when it didn't love him back. He spent countless days of service downtown, keeping an eye on things and was honored to wear his badge. Starkville loved him back. May he rest in peace."

JC Long
The Scholar, Mitch
Photography
8” x 10” x 2”
$50

"Well known as an MSU sight, The Scholar inspires wonder in abstract notions without race, without gender, without political assignment. It is merely an inquisitive and disciplined human in a pose that demonstrates how to free the mind and fly like the wind."

JC Long
MY SOUL THIRSTS!
Photography
8” x 12” x 2”
$50

"One of the last bastions of illegal art in Starkville, the "graffiti wall" near The Mill holds a collection of stories and expressions, some playing off others. As I surveyed the wall for the first time in awe, the phrase "my soul thirsts" rang out and resonated in me and tied together this segment of the wall as pure art. My soul thirsts for graffiti art to become legal, supported public art: "graffiti" --> "mural"."

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Joseph MacGown

Joseph MacGown uses improvisation and a wide range of media to create colorful expressive works.

Joseph MacGown
Mural Design
Pastel, photoshop, mounted on canvas
20” x 30”
$150

"This piece is the design I used for my first mural and the first public mural in Starkville, MS, which helped secure funding for future public art projects in the area."

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 Olin Norton

Olin Perry Norton (Perry) was trained as a mechanical engineer and moved to Starkville in 1982 to work for the university in a research position. Retired since 2007, he has found time to pursue his lifelong passion for photography. He can often been seen with his camera as he goes for his daily walk from the Cotton District to downtown Starkville and back.

Olin Norton
On the Rue du Grand Fromage (2022)
Photography
20” x 24”
$200

"The Cotton District is unique to Starkville. I lived there for almost 20 years, and I have photographed it extensively. I am fascinated by this passageway on the Rue du Grand Fromage and I have photographed it many times. A door, window, or other passageway provides a natural frame for a photograph, and it also creates some mystery about where it may lead."

Olin Norton
Dionysus
Photography
20” x 24”
$200

"This is one of many photographs I have taken of the Cotton District. Here a statue of the Greek god Dionysus occupies a place of honor atop a fountain at 700 University Drive. Behind him can be seen the building at 612 University Drive. The Roman name for Dionysus was Bacchus."

Olin Norton
The Temple at Night
Photography
20” x 24”
$200

"The Temple is a building in the Cotton District, located at 900 Cotton Row. I have photographed it many times, but perhaps my favorite is this black and white image I captured at night. The front of the Temple is illuminated by a street light, but the area behind the building is in darkness, so the building is visually isolated from its surroundings."

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Bonnie Renfroe

Bonnie V Renfroe draws and paints with life in her brush, even when conceptualizing a building. As the child of an architect, Renfroe spent many hours sitting next to her father while drawing and designing buildings.

Bonnie Renfroe
Church of the Resurrection
Watercolor
10” x 12”
$225

"Resurrection is my beloved church."

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Peyton Rushton

When you start looking for the beauty in the mundane, you'll find it. Suddenly your daily life becomes art work - a statement in itself. What beautiful artist's we can all be.

Peyton Ruston
It’s the Little Things...
Photography
5” x 7”
$60

"This photo was taken while I was walking down the Cotton District to MS State campus. I looked over at the Visual Arts center to see a vase of roses with the evening sun leaking through the windows; it was simply pretty. It truly is the little things that make Starkville beautiful."

Peyton Rushton
Silent Reader
Photography
5” x 7”
$60

"Hidden between the stacks of Mitchell Memorial Library sits a chair, silently reading. "

Peyton Rushton
District Daze
Photography
5” x 7”
$60

"Days spent in the district, contemplating where to eat."

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Kenzie Sherrell

Kenzie Sherrell is a Sophomore Graphic Design student at Mississippi State University. She is from Spanish Fort, AL and has always enjoyed photographing the details of cities.

Mackenzie Sherrell
Eyes Over the District
Photography
5” x 7”
$50

"This is one photograph of four that highlights the small details of Starkville, that are commonly overlooked during our day to day lives. I have always loved the detail and elegance that the statues throughout the Cotton District bring to the area and I wanted to highlight them in my photo."

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About AiPP

As part of SAAC's AiPP series, works may be listed for sale, including framed and unframed pieces. SAAC collects and pays sales taxes on behalf of the artist for any work sold, and the artist keeps 80% of the proceeds. ​

Please CALL or EMAIL SAAC if you are interested in purchasing any of these works.