John "Cornbread" Anderson is one of the Southeast's most frequently exhibited and highly collected folk artists, but his ego hasn't quite caught up with his success.
Thus when Main Street Gallery in Clayton told the Cumming artist that his critter-filled work was going to be the subject of an exhibit (through March 19), he was relieved that he didn't have to appear at an opening reception. He was similarly reluctant when another of the folk art galleries that represents him, Dawsonville's Around Back at Rocky's Place, sought to get him to teach a session in its ongoing "Paint with the Artist" series at Dawson County's Bowen Center for the Arts.
When Cornbread took his sweet time to confirm, Rocky's Place co-owners Tracey Burnette and Robin Blan boldly put his name on the schedule to force the matter. Despite the fact that his lesson is Sunday, competing for attention with the Super Bowl, registration is nearing the 100-person maximum. But Cornbread has been coerced to teach another one on Feb. 13 if the demand is there.
The bashful former Dawson County sheriff's deputy anticipates appearances like a guilty party about to stand in a police lineup. Earlier this week, he was fretting over whether he'd try to teach the group to paint a simple brown trout or, something a little more involved: a dear running up a hill from a lake.
"I don't want them thinking, if it's too simple, 'I could've done that by spilling a jar of paint' ," he said of his more-complicated-than-they-look compositions. On the other hand, he acknowledged, "It is kind of simple really."
Art event
"Paint with Cornbread"
3-5 p.m. Sunday. Bowen Center for the Arts, 334 Ga. 9 North, Dawsonville. $45 includes supplies. To register: 706-265-6030 or e-mail aroundbackatrockysplace@hotmail.com.
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