Black History Month: Visual Arts Gallery Features Retired Art Educator

The Visual Arts Gallery at Thomas Nelson celebrates Black History Month with an exhibition from one the College's long-time art instructors. Jackie Merritt was an adjunct instructor of drawing for 12 years before retiring in 2019.

Her paintings and drawings, including "New Normal" (pictured), are featured this month on the Visual Arts website at visualarts.vpcc.edu.

Merritt was recently spotlighted by the Hampton Arts Foundation. Available by CLICKING HERE, the article reads in part:

Jackie Merritt is a nationally known artist and musician who calls Hampton Roads home. She sees herself as a storyteller and leans into this role whether the story is alive on canvas or in song. The overlap and influence her art and music have on each other is felt in her work, often turning to the mediums of color pastel on paper and the Piedmont Blues. For example, a drawing of her mother and herself is being featured in an international exhibition at the Hammond Museum. In addition to the artwork, the Museum is presenting the lyrics to the accompanying song she wrote about being a caregiver.

Jackie is a multi-instrumentalist (harmonica, guitar, bass, uke, and bones), a talented songwriter, and has played a large role in the growth of Blues music in the Hampton Roads area - for which she has received several prestigious awards recognizing her contributions to the Coastal Virginia Arts and Music scene. To enjoy some of Jackie's Blues renditions, visit her band's website.