Fazio Gallery
Hendersonville artist Sue Fazio has gathered more than 325 paintings and over 50 pieces of pottery together in a new by-appointment gallery on Main Street, offering visitors a rare opportunity to experience the breadth of her creative journey in one place. Every piece sold supports a cause that has been central to her life for more than 30 years.
“All of the proceeds from the sales of my work go to the Boys & Girls Club,” says Fazio. “When people buy my art, they just write checks straight to the Boys & Girls Club of Henderson County.”
In 1993, Fazio and her husband founded the Boys & Girls Club of Henderson County after recognizing a troubling pattern among local students.
“There were 150 kids in the freshman class in 1989 and only 100 graduated,” says Fazio. “That was the single pivoting point when Tom and I decided something needed to be done.”
Sue Fazio
What began in a 3,000-square-foot community center with 75 members has grown into a 65,000-square-foot facility serving more than 400 children each day. Fazio points to dramatic improvements in graduation rates and educational opportunities among club participants as evidence of the organization’s impact.
“When we first started, none of our children graduated from high school,” says Fazio. “At this point, 100 percent of our members graduate from high school.”
Art has played a role in that mission from the beginning. Fazio served as the club’s art instructor during its first decade and remains convinced that creative expression is essential to personal development.
“When we opened the Boys & Girls Club, I was the art program teacher for the first 10 years,” says Fazio. “It’s amazing what kids can create if they’re given the freedom that I give myself.”
The gallery occupies a building that Fazio and her husband, Tom, have owned for 15 years. After serving a variety of purposes over the years—including housing a temporary teen center affiliated with the Boys & Girls Club—the space became the ideal home for a collection that had outgrown storage areas and temporary exhibitions.
Fazio’s art subjects range from golf courses to beloved pets, landscapes and large-scale abstract works inspired by different chapters of her life. One of the gallery’s most striking pieces is a 50-foot-long abstract work titled The River Runs Through It, which she describes as a visual representation of her life.
Fazio also recently embraced pottery, adding a three-dimensional element to her creative practice.
“It’s really, really difficult for me,” she says of the new medium. “I must like to do hard things, challenge myself and to learn something every day.”
Fazio continues to paint because it has become inseparable from who she is.
“I can’t stop painting any more than I can stop breathing,” she says. “I hope when people come into my gallery they understand the freedom I really feel and the love and passion I have for the world. I hope they experience my joy.”
Email suefazioart@faziodesign.com to schedule an appointment to see the gallery collection.
