WILSON, N.C. — Barton College’s professor emeritus and artist-in-residence J. Chris Wilson is featured in the upcoming March issue of “Our State” magazine.
“Our State’s March issue is devoted to the idea of ‘Crossing North Carolina,’” shared Elizabeth Hudson, editor of Our State magazine. “We were interested in exploring how we traverse this state from Murphy to Manteo, and our profile of artist Chris Wilson was a perfect fit. Our story not only describes an artistic journey across North Carolina, but also it reveals Wilson’s personal life journey, as well. We were so proud to publish this compelling portrait of an artist and North Carolina resident who embraces this state from east to west.”
The scenic diversity of North Carolina offers a rich history seen through breathtaking landscapes and a unique view into the Southern heritage of the state. Wilson has captured these landscapes as never seen before in his series “From Murphy to Manteo — An Artist’s Scenic Journey.” His detailed and painterly oil on canvas paintings often portray more than a camera lens or eye can see, some measuring nearly 16 feet in width. On Wilson’s journeys across the state, he captured multiple compositions of large landscapes—waterfalls, cotton fields, country roads, mountains, coastlines—and used them as the inspiration to create a comprehensive portrait of the North Carolina Landscape in our time from the mountains to the ocean.
Wilson currently has a number of his large landscape paintings, representing a sampling of the “From Murphy to Manteo” series, on display in the lobby of the North Carolina Museum of History in Raleigh, and additional works from the series will be on exhibit at the Arts Council of Wilmington and New Hanover County from March 4 – April 22, and in the Willis N. Hackney Library on the campus of Barton College from February 18 – April 29.
Wilson has been featured on WRAL’s “Tarheel Traveler,” and “WTVD’s Heart of Carolina Perspectives,” and his work has been exhibited throughout the southeast and all across North Carolina. Wilson’s art is represented in numerous public and private collections in the United States, especially in the southeast, and in England, Japan, and Saudi Arabia.
The former director for the Scholastic Art Awards for Eastern North Carolina, Wilson is originally from Waycross and St. Simons Island, Ga., and he currently makes his home in Wilmington. He is married to Kathleen and has a son Matthew and a daughter Singleton. Wilson served on the faculty of Barton College from 1974-2012, earning professor emeritus recognition following retirement. Now, he continues at Barton as the College’s first artist-in-residence. He earned a Master of Fine Arts degree from the University of Georgia, where he also completed post-graduate work, with Lamar Dodd as his major professor.
For additional information or to view Wilson’s work, please visit www.jchriswilson.com.
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Questions? Please contact Kathy Daughety, director of public relations, at 252-399-6529 or email: kdaughety@barton.edu.