With two locations, Mitchell Community College will display the artistic talents of students at the Downtown Statesville Spring Art Crawl on March 31 from 5:30-8:30 p.m. while paying tribute to a celebrated artist and former director of the art department of the College for 32 years – Don Moore. 

GG’s Art, Frames, Gifts, located at 101 W. Broad Street, will feature the works of Don Moore which are available for purchase with a percentage of the sales to benefit the Friends of the Arts Fund at Mitchell Community College. 

A woodwind trio of music students, Melina Gutierrez and Olivia Stang on clarinet, and

Gage Beaver on tenor saxophone, will perform at GG’s along with voice major Wynston Lyles. 

The student work of the Mitchell Art Club will be on display at Iredell Museums, located at 134 Court Street. This display of Mitchell talent in arts and music highlights the very type of aspiring students that the Friends of the Arts Fund benefits – a cause that was close to Don Moore’s heart.

Over 55 Don Moore paintings are already on display at GG’s, but during the art crawl, one Don Moore painting will be raffled off with 100% of the proceeds to benefit the Friends of the Arts Fund. Tickets will be $10.

“This is a memorial to Don and his love of the community, and the community to him. I wanted to support Mitchell, and I like hosting a memorial for Don because he was such a beloved citizen who contributed so much to this community over the many years,” said Gloria Hager, who first met Moore while attending her first art show in her 20s at the Canterbury Shop (where Walgreens of Davie Ave. sits now). “I think over the years, I’ve sold more of Don Moore’s art than any other local artist. This collaboration with Mitchell Community College is an example of the community working together – and that’s what we need more of, especially in the arts.”

Moore passed away at the age of 78 on February 10, 2022. As an award-winning artist and teacher, Moore was an integral part of the art community, dedicating his time to the Iredell Artists Guild, Mooresville Artist Guild, and Iredell Museums. He was a lifetime member of The Artist Guild of Statesville and served on the advisory board for Mitchell Community College’s Fine Arts program. 

Moore is remembered for his sense of community and his lasting impact. Whether inspiring his art studio students or encouraging members in the community, Don Moore sought ways to help others. Always smiling, he had a great sense of humor with a unique empathy that revealed itself through his paintings. 

“His work stems from places around this region which functions as a grounding for Moore. I particularly like his pieces that overlay his personal history, lineage, and self-portrait,” said Rogelio Calvo, Art Chair at Mitchell Community College. “A staple of the art community and one of Statesville’s treasures, Don Moore’s work and life should be seen and remembered.”

Moore’s vast collection of works consist of landscapes, nudes, and surrealist motifs, alongside renditions of reality which display themes of memory and the passage of time. In many of the paintings, images seem to be transparent, even fading or transcending into the background or foreground, implying a permeability of form—from past to present to future. His recent work shows a culmination of his life’s experiences and all that he learned in his commitment to the community and his more than three-decade career as an art instructor at Mitchell Community College.

Don Moore’s paintings will be on display at GG’s Art, Frames, Gifts until April 25. After this date, Moore’s work can be viewed at Waterworks Visual Arts Center in Salisbury.