Through July 17, The Gallery at Flat Rock introduces the work of artist Marty Whaley Adams, who, inspired by home and garden, sews, gardens, sculpts, creates monotypes and paints. Moments in Time will feature recent paintings in oil that include still life, silver and flower arrangements, and a section of landscapes with Flat Rock’s Highland Lake as subject. An artist talk will be held Saturday, July 16, at 1 p.m. at the gallery.
Marty Whaley Adams, artist
Since childhood, Whaley Adams has divided her time between Charleston, SC, and Flat Rock, first in a home that her great-grandfather built, and then, beginning in 1982, in the Elliot Place, which she and her first husband bought and where she and her mother spent many creative summers. Until her death, her mother was a piano player, painter and writer, her most well-known book being Mrs. Whaley and her Charleston Garden. Whaley Adams and her current husband recently spent a winter in Flat Rock as well. “We hope to spend at least six to seven months a year here now that we have an empty nest,” she says.
Domesticity and love of home inform Whaley Adams’ work. “I think my paintings tend to encourage people to see the bright side of things,” she says. “It is my hope that people who come to see the show will be inspired to see life as exceptional, and to see the miracles that exist around us every day.”
Creativity has run rampant through her family for generations. “I often say that I was born with a paintbrush in my hand, and in the other hand I had a needle and thread, scissors, clay, seeds, water and dirt,” she says. Her grandmother’s advice was this: “Marty, if you want it, make it.” This creative drive, Whaley Adams says, came from generations of make do.
“There was not a lot of money on hand, and so people had to become creative.” With that accumulation of knowledge comes the urge to create. “I honestly feel that the creative spirit in me cannot be suppressed,” she says. “There are times when I have been unable to paint, when my muse has left me, and, looking back on it, those are the only times in my life when I have been truly unhappy.”
A life-changing experience led her to open a gallery with two locations in Charleston in 1989. “Within no time,” she says, “I was putting on six shows a year and selling most everything that I created. It was an absolutely thrilling experience and proof to myself that life can be rekindled and one can make decisions, set goals and move toward them.”
Since that time, she closed the gallery to “retire,” which has only meant creating more, taking art classes and traveling to scenic places to gather inspiration. “When you see my paintings, it’s evident that I love color,” Whaley Adams says. “I think color is a miracle and I’m fascinated by all the nuances that one can get in mixing various colors.”
The Gallery at Flat Rock is located at Flat Rock Square at 2702-A Greenville Highway, Flat Rock. Regular gallery hours are Wednesday through Saturday, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., Sunday, 12–4 p.m. or by appointment. To learn more, visit GalleryFlatRock.com or call 828.698.7000.
