Local artist Van Bankston will show some of his work in the Artful Home Show next weekend in New York City. The event, which is being held in the Puck Building in SoHo, will begin with an opening reception Wednesday and will continue through Sunday.
The Artful Home Show is an online gallery that Bankston has been participating in for about six years. This will be the company's first live show.
“Taking it from the Internet to an actual physical exhibit is a big deal,” Bankston said.
The unique exhibit will incorporate the work of artists, interior designers and architects into several “room environments.” The idea is that displaying art, furniture, lighting and home accessories in a space together will give patrons ideas for using art in their homes.
“They're trying to present art in a different way,” Bankston said.
The Artful Home Show will also host special events throughout the weekend including book signings and special exhibits, ranging from a jewelry show to a teapot collection.
For those who can't make it to New York, the Artful Home Show Web site features the work of more than 250 carefully selected artists. Customers can search the site by artist name or by item type.
“It's good because it makes original art more available,” Bankston said.
Bankston, a painter, was born and raised in Greenwood. While growing up, he studied under Leny Wacht before going on to earn a degree in landscape architecture at Mississippi State University.
He then moved to New York City and spent the next 16 years studying and working as a designer there.
He returned to Mississippi after buying a historical home in Vicksburg and came back to settle in Carroll County in 1999.
Bankston works full-time on his artwork, but he took one year off to volunteer on the coast after Hurricane Katrina.
He has exhibited his work at the Mississippi Museum of Art in Jackson, but he said he mostly shows outside the state in places such as Memphis, Atlanta, San Francisco, Chicago and New York.
For more information on the Artful Home Show, visit www.artfulhomeshow.com.
