Natural State

A Natural State explores how people express a love for nature by shaping, twisting, carving, and weaving materials collected from the landscape. Some of the arts and crafts featured in A Natural State reveal the cultural heritage of South Carolina, while others employ concepts from the world of modern art.

Grades 6-12

A Natural State explores how people express a love for nature by shaping, twisting, carving, and weaving materials collected from the landscape. Some of the arts and crafts featured in A Natural State reveal the cultural heritage of South Carolina, while others employ concepts from the world of modern art. For more about this project, visit the credits page.

TO GET STARTED: Click on a landform region below to learn more about these artists and how they use the uniqueness of their environment to enhance their artistic vision. To learn more about each landform region, visit the Where Am I? section.

 

 

Brian Rust's Earthen Cycle | A Natural State
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Brian Rust's Earthen Cycle creates visual interest and a place of retreat in an otherwise overlooked stretch of grass connecting two parking lots. A Natural State visited Rust as he installed the site...
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Janet’s sculptural work weaves together elements of several modern art forms briefly described below: Installation Art: Artworks that alter or enhance our experience of the place in which the work...
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Catawba pottery is recognized as one of the oldest and purest traditional art forms in America. Potters such as Billie Anne McKellar, a fourth generation potter, are often ancestors of a long line of...
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The Hagood Mill Historical site occasionally serves as a gathering place for Native American people in the upstate. With its operating grist mill typical of 18 th -19 th century America, and newly...
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South Carolina was once home to a bustling community of potters, but the traditions in the area have nearly died out. Alkaline glazes made their first documented American appearance in the Edgefield...
Piccolo Labyrinth | A Natural State
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Herb Parker's Piccolo Labyrinth, a nature-based sculpture of grass, sod and steel rebar, created a temporary, "quiet, contemplative space" on Charleston's waterfront. As an installation, the sculpture...
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Like many traditional crafts, brooms are functional items that have beautiful and thought-provoking qualities. Weaving and sewing techniques attach the broom straw to the handle, while allowing Peter...
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The ability to work with wood was an asset on rural farms where lifestyles required self-sufficiency and living off the land was common. As a boy, Tom carved his toys - small boats that he floated...
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Arianne grew up in a landscape of gardens, farms and the sea near Virginia Beach, Virginia. As a "child of nature," Arianne found an artistic release through dance and drawing. Arianne later studied...
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Is topiary an attempt to control nature or a form of expression using a nature-based medium? The word topiary is derived from the Greek root word, topias, meaning ornamental garden. An account by...