RESPECT THE EARTH: The final planter in the mosaic public art installment represented the element of Earth.

THOMASVILLE- Local mosaic artist Marty Haythorn has gone global after entering his mosaic-decorated planter, created in 2011, to Elements 2023: An International Group Exhibition by Exhibizone.

Haythorn originally crafted the planter as part of a public art display for the Thomasville Center for the Arts.

“In 2011, the Thomasville Center for the Arts, under the leadership of Michelle Arwood, decided to fund and support the creation of five mosaic-decorated planters as public art projects,” Haythorn explained.

At the time, Haythorn was a member of the Board and extremely encapsulated by the idea of mosaic arts. He had grown up crafting pottery and had always hoped to showcase his love for public art in an innovative way.

“My family lived in southwest California, and we took a lot of trips to Native American reservations where I saw potters,” Haythorn said. “I started doing pottery as a hobby, then I took some classes in wheel throwing, learning how to do studio-type pottery.”

Haythorn said he never envisioned himself as a true “artist,” until he met Ivan Gundrum. According to Haythorn, Gundrum changed his life for the better.

Gundrum was an accomplished artist, who had attended art school since the young age of 10. Haythorn remembers discussing some of Gundrum’s greatest feats, including opening an art studio in Vienna, restoring church frescoes in Germany and decorating Hemingway’s house in Cuba.

However, Gundrum specialized in restoring and recreating indigenous artifacts and pottery. This immediately drew Haythorn’s attention and they began creating art together.

“We kind of adopted each other; I was 21 and he was 82,” Haythorn said.

While Gundrum focused on indigenous artifacts, Haythorn turned his attention to Southeastern Native American artifacts. He eventually expanded into more contemporary pieces, following the same tradition.

His handiwork recreating artifacts made him the ideal artist for the mosaic project.

He, along with Thomasville artists Lindajo Haythorn, Cindy Inman, Mimi Bertolet and two artists from Tallahassee were all challenged with creating the mosaic planters. All of the artists also had help from community members, who helped them attach tiles to the planters.

Haythorn’s planter was referred to as the “Four Elements,” and depicted an artistic representation of earth, air, water and fire. Some of the tiles incorporated in the planter were unused commercial tiles from flooring and swimming pool contractors, but the majority were handmade.

Once completed, Haythorn’s planter was installed on Remington Avenue between Madison Avenue and Broad Street.

After years of inspiring conversation about the beauty of the planter, Haythorn decided to enter “Four Elements” into an international online digital exhibit known as “Elements,” where he was selected to display his work.

The exhibit was the perfect fit for Haythorn, as its goal is to delve deep into the essence of Earth, fire, water and air.

While it was a great fit, Haythorn was still extremely surprised to have been selected.

“I thought it was a fluke,” he said. “I decided to apply and then began looking at their exhibits from over the years.”

When looking at the past online exhibits, Haythorn didn’t see any other mosaic pieces, leading him to believe his planter may be the first of its kind to appear in Exhibizone.

Although Gundrum has passed away, Haythorn feels like his mentor and friend would be proud to see how far he has come and that his artwork is grabbing the attention of others.

Haythorn hopes his global work will encourage Thomasville to let him continue creating more mosaic public works of art.

Since his first works in Thomasville, Haythorn has gone on to create “Decades of Change” mosaic planters in Valdosta, along with a historical public art mosaic piece titled “River of Life in the Azalea City and the “Wings of Freedom” Military Tribute Monument made of 42 handmade tiles depicting U.S. Military core values and fired on images of service men and women.

Haythorn said he loves these community project art pieces because they allow him to engage with residents and create conversations about art and its history.

However, Haythorn understands that public art is on a hiatus in Thomasville right now, as the City works to create an ordinance, but hopes once the ordinance is complete he can return to creating works that attract tourism and boost the economy.

To view Haythorn’s work, visit www.exhibizone.com/elements2023. The exhibit will be on display from Sunday, September 10- November 10, 2023.