Unusual Art on Display at Clayton Center

Two distinctly different styles of art will be on display at The Clayton Center during July--the whimsical monsters of CJ Calvin of Rockingham and the abstracts of art teacher Melissa Walker of Seagrove.

Their works will be on display in the Clayton Center lobby at 111 E. Second Street downtown from 9 to 5 Monday-Friday. A "meet-the-artists" reception is scheduled for Thursday, July 7 from 6 to 7:30 p.m. at the center. Everyone is invited. Light refreshments—cookies, fruit, cheese, nuts, wine, punch—will be served.

The reception and show, sponsored by Clayton Visual Arts, are both free, and dress is casual.

Though their art is very different, it does have one thing in common--people want to see it.

Calvin’s current direction in art—whimsical, fantastical and colorful imagery—was triggered by the birth of his son six years ago. Today, his acrylic visions of friendly monsters and odd, but happy-looking, people with unusual hair or brightly colored skin have received such a positive response that what he thought was a phase in his artistic life has turned into a direction he continues to follow.

“I feel I have found myself as an artist,” he said.

Calvin has loved art since childhood, starting with Dr. Seuss and comic books, moving through the years to admiration of fine art from Norman Rockwell to Salvador Dali.

In addition to his exhibit in Clayton, he also has a solo show in Carrboro in July and another in Cary this fall. His artwork was part of a group exhibition at Clayton’s Eye of the Eagle in January, and he has exhibited recently in Raleigh, Goldsboro, Fayetteville and Southern Pines, among other cities. He won second-place at the Fine Arts Festival in Moore County in August 2010.

Calvin was born in Kansas City, Mo., the son of an Air Force father. He has lived all over the United States but spent extended periods in California and Wyoming. His wife Wendy is a former resident of Clayton, and the family hopes to move back to Johnston County soon.

His website is www.cjcalvin.com.

Walker, who teaches art at Randleman High School in Randleman, has a very different approach.

“I create abstract acrylic paintings filled with layers of varied textures, collage and color,” she said.

Walker also incorporates nautical charts as collage in her paintings, saying, “It is a way to remind me of the many pleasant hours I have spent in and around the water.” She aims to illustrate the essence of the ocean by incorporating mixed media elements into her abstract expressionism and brings the viewer into the artwork with titles that repeat locations on the charts used in the paintings.

She also creates visual journals, altered books and Artist Trading Cards. Recently, three of her artist journal pages were published in the book, “1,000 Artist Journal Pages” by Dawn DeVries Sokol.

She had a solo exhibit in High Point earlier this year and plans other showings in Asheboro, Wilson, and Charleston later this year.

Walker, who has been an art educator since 1989, earned National Board Certification in 2001. She has a bachelor’s degree from East Carolina University and a master’s in painting and printmaking from the University North Dakota in Grand Forks.

Her husband Ed is also an artist and owns Carolina Bronze Sculpture, a casting foundry.

Walker’s website is www.melissawalkerartist.com.