THOMASVILLE- Thanks to the vision of Thomasville Center for the Arts, visitors to Downtown Thomasville can plan to experience not one, but two free public art exhibitions this spring.

The Ritz Amphitheater is now immersed in 14 Decades of Music in Thomasville, a historic photography exhibition exploring the evolution of music and music photography styles across decades, genres, cultures, and locations. Simultaneously, West Jackson Street has been “yarn bombed” by over a dozen teams of fiber artists who have created fresh and contemporary takes on Thomasville’s iconic rose in an exhibition entitled Stop + Smell the Roses!

“The beauty depicted in these public art installments is unmatched,” said Darlene Crosby Taylor, public art director at Thomasville Center for the Arts. “The artists we engage in our public art projects never cease to amaze me with their creativity, innovation, and passion.”

Journey through Time

The 14 Decades collection of over 50 images honors and celebrates Thomasville’s music culture from 1890 to today. The exhibition includes portraits, images of live performances, behind-the-scenes moments, clothing, and architectural themes. It also includes icons such as Thomasville Entertainment Foundation, with their claim as one of the first and oldest concert presenter organizations in the nation; Thomasville’s Cocroft Music Company, believed to be the longest operating music store in Georgia at the time of closing (1922-2009); and Thomasville’s WPAX, which received its first broadcasting license in 1922 and was just the third to do so in Georgia and the 20th in the United States.

“This photography project in the Ritz Amphitheater is just one way that fresh new public art is enlivening the Creative District this spring,” says Center for the Arts executive director Erin Wolfe Bell. “When coupled with the Center’s other public art installations along West Jackson Street and in the UnVacant Lot, downtown is simply radiating creativity.”

In addition to the photographs, a new mural by Clay Byars, inspired by a historical image of The Ritz, showcases the old entertainment venue and namesake for Thomasville’s amphitheater, which was once located in The Sandy Bottom District.

Smell the Roses

On display through the 104th Rose Show Festival, Stop + Smell the Roses! focuses on the sights and sounds of Thomasville as the community celebrates the symbolic rose. Teams of fiber artists competed in early April for cash prizes and awards for Best of Show, 1st place, 2nd place, honorable mention, and community favorite.

A jury selected the following stand-out yarn bombs:

• Best of Show – Sissy Ledbetter – $1,000
• 1st – Emily McKenna and Sara Simmons – $750
• 2nd – Jennifer Vanderbeek – $500
• Honorable Mention – Erin Wood – Downtown Dollars and Dinner at Jonah’s
• Honorable Mention – Tenee’ Hart – Downtown Dollars and Dinner at Jonah’s
• Top Dog Sponsor – Jeff Hurst

The rose theme continues beyond the yarn with five other floral pieces scattered around downtown. In the UnVacant Lot, located at 217 West Jackson Street, artist Marlo Ransdell is showcasing the diversity of wood and acrylic on a wall filled with color and blooms. Painter Trish Land has brought to life the adjacent walls with her signature roses, while artist Sam McCoy collaborated with muralist Joe Cowdrey to elaborate on their interpretation of Southern flora. Paper mâché artist David Junker brings pollinators to life with various playful sculptures, as well.

In the Ritz Amphitheater, artist Cindy Inman has captured music and roses with a painted metal sculpture, which was originally fabricated by Hurst Boiler for FLAUNT 2022.

Take a Tour

Walking tour maps of both exhibitions can be found in The UnVacant Lot and on the Thomasville Center for the Arts website at thomasvillearts.org/public-art (choose “The UnVacant Lot” for the rose art map or select “In the Open” for the music photography map). In addition, a commemorative limited-edition postcard book featuring ten historic music photographs may be purchased at Thomasville Center for the Arts, Thomasville History Center, or Thomasville Visitor’s Center, as well as on the Center’s website.

“Public art projects have many purposes in a thriving community,” said Taylor. “They grant free access to visual art mediums; they drive foot traffic through our downtown shopping and dining districts; they give artists a canvas for creativity; and they beautify spaces.”

The two exhibitions have been made possible in part through the support of 1915 South | ASHLEY, Hurst Boiler, Bobby Dollar’s Appliance Consultants, Sea Gate Printing, City of Thomasville, and Kim and Jay Flowers. Thomasville History Center, Thomasville Entertainment Foundation, and Jack Hadley Black History Museum also collaborated.