Mary Welch Austin Spotlight Artist Sept. 16 – Nov. 2

Mary Welch Austin named Spotlight Artist at Sunset River Gallery Sept. 16 – Nov. 2

Mary Welch Austin has been named Spotlight Artist at Sunset River Gallery in Calabash, NC from Sept. 16 through Nov. 2. Austin is known for her keen sense of harmony and balance in her landscapes and seascapes. Working primarily in oil, she suggests the magic of light and texture along with the compositional dance of positive and negative spaces in nature.

Austin’s award-winning paintings showcase the variety of coastal and inland scenes characteristic of the Carolina low country region. Private collectors and designers are discovering the majesty of Austin’s land and waterscapes; her large works take centerstage in homes throughout the region.

The artist is originally from High Point, NC and attended Salem College, the University of Georgia and earned a BFA degree in Art from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. After a career as a fabric designer developing significant skills in color, composition and perspective, she now enjoys focusing exclusively on her painting.

Gallery director Samantha Spalti said, “Mary’s work is outstanding. From her vision to her brushstrokes to her treatment of light . . . she’s the sort of artist who artists love.”

Featured painting: Into the Light, oil by Mary Welch Austin, 24×48.

About Sunset River Gallery

Located in coastal Brunswick County, NC, Sunset River Gallery caters to both area visitors and a growing local community of full-time residents seeking fine art for their homes and businesses. Featuring works by over 100 fine regional artists including Betty Anglin Smith, Marcus McClanahan, Janet Sessoms, and Richard Staat, among others, the gallery is well known in the area for its selection of oil paintings; watermedia; pastels; photography; hand-blown, stained, and fused glass; pottery and clay sculpture; turned and carved wood; unique home décor items; and artisan jewelry.

There are two onsite kilns and five wheels used by the gallery’s pottery students. The gallery also offers ongoing oil/acrylic and watercolor classes as well as workshops by nationally known instructors.

The gallery’s carefully curated selection of investment-grade 20^th century fine art is the largest in the Carolinas. Current inventory can be found in the gallery website’s 20^th Century Artists section. It includes works by Wolf Kahn (1927-2020), Raimonds Staprans (1926), Angel Botello (1913-1986), Vladimir Cora (1951), Fritz Scholder (1937 – 2005), Ginny Crouch Stanford (1950), and two bronze sculptures by Milton Hebald (1930 – 2010).

Sunset River Gallery