The Lincoln County Library is currently hosting the Morris Museum of Art Panel Exhibition, featuring works of art by Southern artists. A special invitation is extended to local residents to drop by the library and "talk art" with representatives of the museum on Friday, June 29, from 12 until 2 p.m. Elizabeth Fogarty is shown viewing paintings from the museum's permanent collection. The Lincoln County Library is currently hosting the Morris Museum of Art Panel Exhibition which features reproductions of 18 of the bestknown works from the museum's permanent collection.

Moreover, local residents are invited to participate in "Meet the Morris Museum" Friday, June 29, from 12 until 2 p.m. At this time, representatives of the Morris Museum will be at the library to answer questions about the paintings on display and the museum in general, which is located on the Riverwalk in Augusta.

In addition to Lincoln County, the exhibition is also traveling to Burke, Glascock, Hancock, Jefferson, McDuffie, Taliaferro, and Warren counties.

Among the works of art featured in the exhibit are:

+ Antebellum: Portraits titled "Young Girl With Cat" by Nicola Marshall (1829-1917) and "Portrait of Levi Fletcher" by Thomas Sully (1783- 1872).

Portraiture was undoubtedly the dominant form of painting in the pre- Civil War South. A painted portrait offered a rendering in color that the camera could not.

Portrait artists of the time relied on gesture, pose, costume, props or setting to provide information on the sitter's social status, gender role, professional accomplishments or personal interests. In an era of high infant mortality, the portrait was often the only record a family had of the offspring who did not survive to adulthood.

.. Early to Mid-20th Century: "Bargain Basement" by Lamar Dodd (1909-1996)

Acquired by the Morris Museum the year that it opened (1992), this depiction of retail shopping in a Depression Era Birmingham, Alabama, department store seems to seethe with the same kind of activity and excitement that must have attended the museum's premier. It certainly reflects Dodd's Love of the South.

Dodd was born in Fairburn, Georgia, and reared in LaGrange. Over a long and productive career, his styles encompassed naturalism, expression- ism, and even abstraction.

Like many other artists on the American scene during the 1930s, Dodd was concerned with figurative painting, carefully composing his works of art to provide one with a sense of place. That is certainly true of "Bargain Basement," thought by many to be his best painting.

The art school at the University of Georgia is named in his memory.

.. Late 20th Century and Contemporary: "Col. Poole's Pig Hill of Fame" by John Baeder (b. 1938) and "Preacher" by Benny Andrews (1930-2006).

This part of the museum's collection features works of art that were created during the past 40 years, illustrating the richness and vitality of the contemporary South's art scene. The scene is pluralistic, reflecting the acceptance of a wide range of artistic styles in the region with none viewed as mainstream. Although varied in style and content, contemporary Southern art often retains a connection to regional culture in a larger sense.

.. Genre: "The Price of Blood" by Thomas Satterfield Noble (1835- 1907).

The term "genre painting" refers to a scene from everyday life represented for its own sake. "The Price of Blood" is more serious than most genre paintings, delivering a decidedly moralistic message. The painting depicts a slave owner selling his own bi-racial son.

.. Impressionism: "The Yellow Parasol" by Louis L. Betts (1873-1961)

American impressionist painting was inspired by French impressionism. These artists were concerned with capturing and conveying the fleeting effects of sunlight and atmosphere.

Working directly from nature, impressionists often used unblended brush strokes in contrasting colors to mimic the effects of light at a particular time of day.

.. Civil War: "The Lost Cause" by Henry Mosler (attributed) (1841- 1920).

This work of art both documents and recalls the Civil War, the central event in American history. The war was particularly devastating to the South, where it wreaked havoc on a good portion of the region, leaving