From bright green to pale gray, the thousands of paint strokes covering the canvases inside of Allied Arts recollect the life and experience of Betty George “Beegee” Baugh, former first lady of Milledgeville.
“If you look at it, it represents her lifetime. She painted places she’s visited… she painted memories, or things that were special to her,” said Allied Arts’ Executive Director Rebekah Tobar.
“I feel the adventure in it, the adventure of life, you know? And embracing wherever you go, whatever you’re doing,” she continued.
Many of Baugh’s memories are proudly displayed throughout the gallery, with one of the most notable pieces being a portrait depicting a sunny courtyard surrounded by a yellow stone house, with bright green vines inching up its walls and a sleek stone fountain in the middle of the canvas.
Another work on display inside of the Marlor House showed a beautiful stone breezeway, with sunlight reflecting from the ground and a peek of green vines in the distance.
These paintings could depict places that Baugh has visited, lived, or seen. According to Tammi McMullen, office manager of Allied Arts, Baugh’s artwork spans a range of over 50 years.
Additionally, most of Baugh’s pieces at Allied Arts were unnamed, which could add to the elusiveness of the memories they are representing.
“Bloom wherever you’re planted,” said McMullen, describing the message she thinks Baugh was trying to send with her work.
Being well into her 90s and having decades of experience under her belt, Baugh’s work holds a certain sense of wisdom and maturity that might sometimes be hard to find in the pieces of younger artists.
However, Baugh wasn’t only an artist. McMullen and Tobar also touched on the fact that Baugh was one of the original founders of Allied Arts, originally known as the Milledgeville Art Association, back in the 1980s.
“She’s a part of Milledgeville’s history, and she’s a part of Allied Arts’ history. She helped get this started, it wouldn’t be what it is without her, and that energy that she put into it at the beginning to get it going,” Tobar said.
Baugh served as Milledgeville’s first lady from 1980 to 1997 while her husband, Dr. James E. Baugh, was mayor.
According to Allied Arts’ website, Baugh attended Georgia State College for Women (GSCW), now known as Georgia College, from 1946 to 1950 and received a bachelor’s degree in art education. She then went on to be an art instructor at GSCW before moving on to teaching at Baldwin County High School, where she stayed for 12 years.
To see this exhibit, please visit the Marlor House, located at 201 N. Wayne St. in Milledgeville. The exhibit will be open from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday until Feb. 21.
For any questions regarding the gallery, please call Allied Arts at 478-452-3950.