Anne Hamilton

Artist Statement: For me art brings me closer to God than any other activity -- it
ignites in me a spirit that wants to create something new. It also reminds me how
difficult, if not impossible, this is. In the process of this experience I connect with
something primal inside of me that is exciting, so much so that I am driven to
connect with it again and again.


I was born in 1939, in a rural area in northeast Alabama, where my family owned a small
farm. In spite of the poverty we suffered as a result of the post depression, this pastoral
setting allowed my imagination to flourish. After the basic necessities were paid for from the
harvest of the crops there was little if any, money left. This meant my two brothers and
myself had to depend upon nature for the wealth from which to create toys, build play houses
and play games.
I believe it is still those experiences which supply the images I continue to use in my
paintings today. When I paint trees I often have the same feeling as I did while looking out
of a school bus window into the woods. I thought them beautiful then in the same way I do
now. When I was a small child I would climb onto my mother's lap and beg her to draw
pictures for me. This too, is a feeling I often recall while I'm painting.
When I was in elementary school I was discouraged about pursuing art because it was
difficult for me to paint within the lines and the teacher gave me bad grades. I still can't
draw between the lines but it doesn't bother me any more--it keeps me humble.
Following my husband's death in 1980, I began to take art more seriously. I enrolled for my
first course/lesson at Northeast Alabama Community College at Rainsville, Al. This changed
my life. I took all of the art courses available there, transferred to the University of Alabama
in Huntsville, took as many courses I could there and did the same at Athens University in
Athens, Al, where I received my degree.
I'm 71 years old now, and I find art for me as well as others more important than ever.
One of my main activities today is that of promoting the Northeast Alabama Art Council. As
Charter President I'm helping to raise the consciousness of the public to the importance of
art in education and society. Another of my projects is my 1890s historical home, The
Grande O'l Lady, which acts as a gallery for many of my paintings and a setting for small
retreats. I also open the home from time to time for exhibitions of others artists and
maintain a studio there where I teach and conduct workshops.

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