ARA Entering it's Fifth Year: Now Exhibiting in Wetumpka, Alabama

 The ARA exhibition series has now gone beyond it's Georgia borders roots.

Conceived in 2011 and after over 4 years of growth, exhibitions around Georgia, and presentations to regional civic groups, ARA is now exhibiting the homage to the rural American farmer to Alabama residents. The historic Kelly Fitzgerald Memorial Gallery, located at 408 South Main Street in Wetumpka, just north of Montgomery, is currently hosting the exhibition of works by our now 16 artists and artisans as well as a presentation of several poems and short essays written expressly for ARA by associated writers from the Greensboro Writers' Guild.

The artwork exhibited includes oil paintings, watercolors, pastels, encaustic paintings, egg tempera paintings, digital photographs, traditional film photography, prints from wet plate collodion photos, acrylic paintings, models of farm buildings, pottery, ceramics, pen & ink drawings, quilts, and more.

The KELLY is located on the top floor of the Wetumpka, AL Administration Building

There will be a cd with traditional music representing the rural scene and 2 songs written expressly for the exhibition series, also used in the 40 minute ARA video. The Wetumpka community artists and students are presenting their own adjunct exhibition related to the rural and farming theme entitled The Land: God's Gift. Please visit the Gallery and see the many representations of the farming community, from the past to the present. The exhibit runs from January 19 through April 22. The "artists' reception" where you will have the opportunity to meet many of the participating artists will be held on February 12th from 5:30 pm - 7 pm.

Come out and celebrate America's farm country and the people who worked hard to feed a nation and the rest of the world.

Thank you for your interest in the ARA series.

Here are a few photos of the exhibit taken by Wetumpka's Wayne Atchison and ARA member Peter Muzyka:

ARA begins on the 2nd floor

The Land: God's Gift is on the first floor

Besides the many paintings and photos

the 2 exhibits include...

pottery, farm models, and quilts

Visit the Abandoned Rural America website for more information about this dynamic and interesting production representing the American family owned small farm.

The 5 year anniversary exhibition will be held 

this coming August 28 through October at the 

Lyndon House Art Center in Athens, GA.