They had their share during a show at the fair. Now the winners of the Clay County Agricultural Fair’s Home Arts & Photography Competition are showing their works as the latest in the Art in the Courthouse series.
The display runs through June 16 on the fourth floor of the Clay County Courthouse at 825 N. Orange Ave. in Green Cove Springs. Clerk of Court and Comptroller Tara Green created the art program after working with community outreach director Mary Justino.
Lining the gallery wall opposite courtrooms at the courthouse, this seventh show lines the gallery wall opposite courtrooms. Vishi Garig, supervisor of the clerk's Archives Division, curated the show, working closely with art show personnel from the fair, which took place March 30 to April 9.
The idea for the program arose after Green saw public galleries set up through the 43-year-old Florida’s Art in State Buildings Program as she traveled across the state as part of her duties in the Florida Clerks and Comptrollers Association. Those sites included state office buildings and university and college campuses.
When Green and Justino helped judge an Art Guild of Orange Park show about two years ago, that sparked the idea for the permanent courthouse gallery and its first show.
The art gallery is open to the public from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Mondays through Fridays. All visitors must go through courthouse security to get inside.
Displays rotate through the gallery every one to three months, and expansion of display space is underway.
Artists from the following groups are featured in this year's shows: First Coast Quilters Guild, Art Guild of Orange Park, Clay County Fair, First Coast Plein Air Painters, Jacksonville Artists Guild, Courthouse Employees, and the Youth Art & Photography (Augusta Savage Center).
