Works by Lucile Stephens

March 26 to June 18, 2022 in the North Gallery and Lobby Case  

Born in Demorest, Georgia, to a family of artists, Lucile Stephens moved to Athens for the first time in 1955 to attend the University of Georgia in Athens (UGA), graduating with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in 1959. She earned a Master of Art Education from UGA in the sixties, and taught art in Athens’ elementary schools while her husband attended law school. After a decade of raising children in Habersham County, Lucile moved to the coast. While living on St. Simons Island and Neptune beach, she took welding classes at the community colleges in Brunswick and Jacksonville. Not one to stay in the same place for too long, Lucile eventually left the coast for Asheville before relocating to Athens again in 2016.

As an avid learner and constant maker, Lucile has explored blacksmithing, ceramics, painting, and any other medium she can find. She’s worked with papier-mâché and found objects, such as the painted sticks on view in the Lobby Case. She is drawn to bright colors and inventive subject matter. Lucile says, “If there is a rule, I can’t wait to break it.”

Her works are fantastical, inventive and many times inspired by flora and fauna.  Whimsical portraiture in a bold color palette encourage the viewer to think just beyond what is visible. Possibly a trip to Alice’s Wonderland or swim through the coral reef.  This exhibit includes medium scaled paintings on canvas and smaller hand-built ceramic works all together creating a wonderful adventure to share with others.