Gas station operator. Fortune cookie maker. Sanitation worker. Dishwasher. Waitress. Truck driver. These are the people captured in a new portrait series on display at the Gibbes Museum in downtown Charleston.
Capturing folks going about the business of life — that’s what local figurative artist Mary Whyte has done in the new exhibit entitled “Salt of the Earth.” The series of 26 watercolor portraits is on view at the Gibbes until Sept. 27 in honor of the nation’s semiquincentennial.
“America is your neighbor — the person who serves you coffee, does your dry cleaning, delivers your Amazon boxes,” Whyte told The Post and Courier. “I wanted to show average everyday people that portray the spirit and the grit of America.”
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Individuals from San Francisco, Sante Fe and New Orleans — and places we’ve probably never heard of — are on display right alongside South Carolinians, their daily lives now works of art to be admired.
“Captain” by Mary Whyte. 2022. Watercolor on paper.
Provided
Also on display is Whyte’s “Life Series,” a five-piece watercolor collection with layered, dreamlike imagery exploring memory, aging and the passage of time. In between each of the five works, Whyte drew life stages of a sunflower directly on the museum walls in charcoal.
Distinct from her work based on specific individuals, the “Life Series” is a collage of recollections, intentionally fragmented. She created it without rules or limitations, Whyte said in her artist statement, embracing a sense of freedom she connects to the ideals of expression and self-determination that shaped the nation’s founding 250 years ago.
Ordinary moments
Whyte has a distinct ability to reveal humanity within ordinary moments, like that of McClellanville oysterman Jeff Spahr lugging a heavy haul in “Oyster Bank.” She tagged along with him for a harvest day, hearing the wind blow through the marsh grass and his boots sucking into the pluff mud.
Charleston artist Mary Whyte’s new exhibit, “Salt of the Earth,” is on view at the Gibbes Museum until Sept. 27.
Alice Keeney/Provided
“As we ran the boat through the creeks, it seemed to me that she really enjoyed taking in the environment around her,” Spahr said. “And I can only imagine she was maybe saving that feeling for later when she painted.”
He’s been oystering for 25 years, learning from those who have been doing it twice as long as him. Being part of this show celebrating the American way makes him feel like he’s playing his part in honoring the past and making the future better.
“It’s important to recognize the evolution of community and its impacts on our society,” Spahr said. “I think Mary has gone outside the traditional boundaries of a geographical community and created a larger group that represents part of America, and I’m happy to be part of that.”
Looking forward
As the nation marks a milestone anniversary, Whyte’s work serves as a reminder that the soul of America continues to live in the hopes, struggles and determination of persevering people.
“Eden” by Mary Whyte. 2023. Watercolor, acrylic and charcoal on paper.
Provided
“The exhibition presents an honest vision of America at 250 and what we collectively continue to strive for in terms of respecting one another, placing the value and well-being of our fellow citizens at the forefront of our minds and working together to advance and inspire dreams,” said Alex Rich, president and CEO of the Gibbes.
Whyte will be involved with community programming at the Gibbes over the summer, including an artist talk at 6 p.m. on June 10, a panel discussing American portraiture at 6 p.m on July 1 and a “tea and tour” event at 2 p.m. on July 22.
To her, the exhibit shows the quiet good we may see in people if we look beyond the negativity going on in the world and combative political discourse.
Behind each portrait is an enduring curiosity to find the magic of existence, to see someone in a new light. Perhaps after experiencing “Salt of the Earth,” folks will feel a greater appreciation and empathy for those who cross their paths.