Mark your calendar for the Meet the Artists event for Bloom Where You Are Planted on Saturday, September 21 at 2 p.m. Come to the library to meet Heddy Podnar, Kiara Jones, and Wendi Jackson in person, and have the opportunity to view the exhibit and ask the artists about their creative process. Light refreshments will be provided. It is free and open to the public to attend.
Wendi Jackson’s delicate, floral ceramic sculptures are located in the display case in the library lobby. Wendi Jackson has returned to making artwork after raising her family, and considers this moment her ‘second bloom’. For the past year and a half, her primary medium has been hand-building in porcelain to create small batch, nature-inspired ceramics. Wendi loves the combination of science and art found within the process of working in ceramics. The themes of creation and nature’s beauty thread throughout her pieces in all mediums.
Kiara Jones, owner of K. Soleil Artwork, created her series of paintings titled “Dancing Through the Seasons.” It is on display in the Adult Services gallery space. Kiara has been creating works highlighting florals and ballet dancers from the Alvin Ailey Dance Company. The art pieces also depict how we may sometimes dance through our “seasons” (in life) alone and sometimes we dance through our “seasons” with others. Kiara hopes these works cause others to pause and reflect on those who have come along various journeys with them in life. However, in seasons where we journey alone – one can still find ways to experience joy even when life throws us challenges. Flowers and nature are the backdrop for her dancers.
Heddy Podnar works in mixed media creating wonderfully layered paintings. Her pieces are up in the Youth Services gallery space. She is a constant gardener, a mother, a teacher and an artist. Her work is bold, fun, and filled with funky flowers. Heddy cultivates all the aspects of her life: friendships, family, rescue animals, and propagated plants. Her artwork allows her to be more aware of her surroundings and her roles in this world, as well as a lover of nature and all living things.
The Bay County Public Library is located at 898 W. 11th Street, Panama City. For more information about the art exhibits and library programming, call (850) 522-2100 or visit www.nwrls.com.
