The public soon will have its first chance to see inside the recently restored Brannon-Heard House while also enjoying a variety of art.

The Sawnee Artists Association will present “Art in Historic Cumming” from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. May 2 and 1 p.m. to 6 p.m. May 3 in the circa 1900 home.

The art show will feature a variety of art by local talent, including paintings, jewelry, photo-
graphy, woodcrafts, sculpture and pottery.

“This was a golden opportunity for us to have our members display their work,” said Charlotte Gardner, Sawnee Artists Association member and co-chair of the event. “We’re delighted for the opportunity to work with the city to bring art to the area.”

More than 100 original pieces of artwork, all created by association members, will be on display and for sale during the show.

In addition, several painters and wood scrollers will give demonstrations of their crafts on the front veranda of the house.

Local musicians Chris Nero, on guitar, Bob Russell, on keyboard, and the Forsyth Wind Quintet will perform at various times throughout the two days.

Linda Heard works with the city and has organized the first shows at the house. She said the art show was the perfect event to showcase the newly restored home to the community, largely because the house has been the subject of many local artists.

“We found that many artists, both professional and amateur, had captured the image of the Brannon-Heard House using various media,” Heard said. “We soon also became aware that some of those artists were members of Sawnee Artists Association.

“So in truth, it was the Brannon-Heard House itself that created the foundation of this event by bringing history and artists together.”

There is no admission to the art show, and organizers hope it will be a great success.

“We do a mailing and we’ve already had a lot of people call ask questions about this,” said Kathy Wert, another co-chair of the event. “A lot of people are curious about the house.”

The association is a grassroots group of some 90 artists and art advocates, primarily from Forsyth County.

According to the group’s Web site, the association was founded in 1974 to provide enriching visual arts experiences for the community.

The group holds a number of art shows each year including the Sawnee Arts Festival and the Bellezza art show.

E-mail Crystal Ledford at crystalledford@forsythnews.com.