Artists bring new creative energy to Mount Olive

MOUNT OLIVE — What began as a few artists moving into a vacant downtown storefront has quickly grown into a creative spark — one that is drawing neighbors, curiosity, and a renewed sense of possibility to Mount Olive.

About a month ago, a group of artists supported by the Arts Council of Wayne County began moving into the storefront. As they settled into the space, passersby grew curious about what might be taking shape behind the freshly lit windows of a building once occupied by another business.

“What’s going on in there?” many people wanted to know, artist Winford Galmon recalled.

We let them know that artists were moving in,” Galmon told the Duplin Journal. “That created an atmosphere of excitement. We want to keep that excitement growing.”

That excitement grew even more visible when the new art collective, now known as The Studios, welcomed visitors during its official open house, held alongside the weekend’s Pickles, Pigs & Swigs festivities.

Galmon, a painter from Goldsboro, is known for creating vibrant, textured works using a distinctive finger-painting technique. His studio sits across the hall from that of Arlon Robinson, another artist helping shape the creative energy inside the building. Originally from Atlanta, Robinson studied graphic design in Charlotte before settling in the area.

“I was doing a lot of acrylic art and moved to digital, so I do a lot of digital prints as well,” Robinson  told Duplin Journal.

While Robinson does use digital technology in his art, he’s quick to point out it always begins with the basics.

“It always starts as a drawing, with a pencil,” he said.

Robinson said a lot of his relatives were artists, but they pursued different passions.

“I just honed in on it and decided it’s something I wanted to do because I enjoy creating things.”

While it’s common to find a group of artists working together in a shared space in larger cities, Galmon says having Robinson and other artists together in smaller communities is important, too.

“From the Renaissance time and the Impressionistic period, artists would get together and develop a movement, develop a sense of style,” Galmon said. “Now, we have the Mount Olive period, where we have a lot of artists coming together. We’re looking to do some pretty cool stuff here.”