Video: Hidden Treasures — Fayette Art Museum

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FAYETTE, Ala. (WCBI) – In the small West Alabama town of Fayette, artists are emerging. A new group has formed known as the Sipsey Art Alliance. While this group is new, the Fayette Art Museum has been encouraging and inspiring visitors since it opened in the late 1960s.

“Art history is in every aspect of our society whether we choose to believe it or not,” said Anne Perry Uhlman, museum director and curator.

More than 5,000 pieces of art cover the walls of the Fayette Art Museum. It’s housed inside the Fayette Civic Center, or what some may remember as the old Fayette Grammar School, creating a unique partnership between the two.

“Imagine all these walls without the artwork, how bland it would look. We work together as a sisterhood, we store pieces here,” Perry Uhlman said.

The Fayette Art Museum started with an art donation from Fayette native, Lois Wilson, in 1969. Today, formal pieces are showcased as well as original folk art.

“We have a wide variety of pieces from well known names like Jimmy Lee Sudduth and Sybil Gibson. Local and national artists, and art that’s worth a lot of money. I tell everybody to Google their names and get an idea of what their artwork is worth,” Perry Uhlman said.

It’s an impressive display for small town Fayette and helps bring cultural activities to West Alabama.

“I’ve been to museums in Washington, California and other places. But to think of a museum of this size, to have this many pieces as it has in its permanent collection, it’s amazing,” said Perry Uhlman.

Free summer arts classes are held for children in July. The museum also sponsors an arts festival in September. New exhibits are on display monthly. The Fayette Art Museum is located at 530 North Temple Avenue and open Monday through Friday 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Visit http://fayetteartmuseum.vpweb.com/ or call (205) 932-8727 for more information.