Art Show Southport Legacy By AMBER ADAMS Tommy Harrelson, a native of Southport, commemorates the work of Art Newton (1922-1964) in his biographical pictorial, Southport’s Art Newton. Hundreds of variations of Newton’s watercolor ocean scenes and landscapes, as well as photographs of art direction through 1960s WECT TV, are dis-played in the book. Collectively, Newton’s paint-ings, his photographs for the State Port Pilot — the local news-paper and his primary means of support — contributed to the beginnings of the Wilmington Art Association. Harrelson recalls taking a lesson from the artist. “You may not be finished, but the painting, as itself is through,” Newton said. “It’s really a good lesson for writing the book,” Harrelson says. Newton’s paintings and pho-tographs capture the timeless-ness of the Atlantic Ocean and Art Newton biographer Tommy Harrelson believes the artist was in his late 30s or early 40s when he posed for this photograph believed to have been taken on the Cape Fear River with Southport in the background. the history of Southport, including portraits of the shrimping fleet at work and the path of Hurricane Hazel’s destruction. “The waterfront is still there and we treasure it, and I think Art did too,” says Pat Pittenger. Pittenger, a fellow artist, Southport friend and Newton admirer says, “Art was a fun person. Having grown up with a musical mother, he sang at almost all social gatherings.” 14 WBM february 2014 From the 1940s through the 1960s, Southport had no industry other than the water and the county seat, Pittenger says. Like many, Newton left the town to earn a living. After serving in the Coast Guard during WWII and receiving education funds from the G.I. Bill, Newton was able to study at the Oxenfant School of Modern Art in New York City, as well as the Cartoonists Illustrators School. But the pull of the historic coastal town never left his memory, and he often returned to Southport to exhibit his works. In 1949, Newton returned to his hometown with his wife Valli and their son Jon Arthur. Newton understood his artwork as a trade, vowing to paint anything “from a house to a portrait” to make a living. Much of Newton’s work, more than 600 paintings, remains in the Southport homes of those who knew him. Some were selected to illustrate Harrelson’s book were often found improperly stored and severely damaged by mildew. In 1964, Newton drowned in the Cape Fear River, leaving his young family behind. “You don’t appreciate a close friend’s true talent until he’s} gone,” Pittenger says. “When Art came back from New York, I think he expressed that love in his paintings. They themselves are labors of love.” Southport’s Art Newton author Tommy Harrelson will sign books in Wilmington February 13 from 7-9 p.m. at Pomegranate Books on Park Avenue and February 15 from 1-3 p.m. at Two Sisters Bookery in the Cotton Exchange. Book Signing
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