Into the Land of Pasaquan

            Eddie Owens Martin was deathly sick.  His days being a young hustler in 1930’s New York were catching up with him.  “I was just coughin’ and heavin’…like I was cleansin’ myself of my past.  And durin’ the worst night of all, when I thought I had died, my spirit seemed to leave my body and I encountered this vision of a great big man sittin’ there like some kinda god, with arms big around as watermelons...  And he said to me, ‘If you … follow my spirit, then you can go…,’” he told biographer Tom Patterson.   Visions instructed him to start a new religion, “Pasaquoyanism”, to change his name to St. EOM.  “You’re an artist,” voices said.  “I really didn’t ever know what I wanted to be in life until I began to dabble in the arts and learned to depend on that inner voice…” Soon paintings of Mayan temples, bizarre landscapes and ancient civilizations filled his squalid apartment.  His image changed from slick to mystic, a guru without followers.  His tribal robes and coiled long, spindly locks added to his allure as he became a popular fortune teller.   

            He’d run away from the family farm outside of tiny Buena Vista, Georgia when he was just 14 years old.  “I threw myself on the mercy of the world,” he’d said about leaving an abusive father and a community that labeled him as different.  Then, at age 49, the spirits told him to move back to the now-vacant family farm and begin building his legacy: the Land of Pasaquan.  “I never had any overall plan.  All I knew was that I could see these designs in my mind… I hadn’t ever built nothin’ before.  I was experimentin.’” Peaking through the woods, townspeople were astonished and mystified as Eddie created 900 feet of  masonry fences emblazoned with weird and risqué images, psychedelic totems, decorative walkways, sculptures, a dance platform, murals and fanciful copulas. Hammered tin embellishments turned the modest farmhouse into a temple.  He toiled relentlessly, mostly alone, for 30 years.  He funded the construction with income from fortune telling. One of his regular customers was Plains resident “Miss Lillian” Carter.

         

   Rumors of trained rattlesnakes kept out interlopers. Teenagers dared each other to go in. One of them, Fred Fussell, took the dare.  He came to get his fortune read and left with a fascination that lasted 30 years. Fred was among the first to recognize the value of St. EOM’s creation and the possibilities it brought to the region.  When Eddie died by suicide in 1986, Fred and his neighbors founded the Pasaquan Preservation Society.  Years of struggling to find funding finally attracted the Kohler Foundation.  It has spent three years and millions of dollars to restore it: everything from stabilizing foundations to bringing the vibrant artwork back to life, the largest and most complex project the Foundation ever undertook.  “It’s beyond our wildest dreams.  We’d tried every avenue we could think of,” Fred says.

            Michael McFalls led Columbus State University’s collaboration during the restoration work and will direct the project as the college takes responsibility for its future preservation. The vision is to “to give visitors a unique insight into the intuitive artistic process… through diverse programming, interdisciplinary workshops, lectures, seminars, retreats, and performances, which challenge established ideas about the arts. We envision Pasaquan becoming a culturally enriching leader…while assisting in economic development.”

            Buena Vista, population 2,000, could use some economic development.  There are hardly any restaurants.  The one B&B is looking for a buyer.  Michael says that the town is “coming around to the idea of Pasaquan being an opportunity. They recognize the genius in their backyard.”   It’s a slow process. When I visited in Nov. there weren’t even any signs directing visitors to the remote art environment.  In nearby Richland though, entrepreneurs have been quick to sense opportunity and raise economic development money.  A shiny rum distillery dominates the still-shabby downtown. The sugar cane’s provenance is just up the road making them the only U.S. rum manufacturer with their own farm. The high quality sipping rum is distributed as far away as Europe.  Amy Stankus moved her artisanal Chocolate South from Atlanta and is gearing up to make gourmet rum balls. Regional artists are being enticed by the low cost of living and progressive ideas.  It’s an ironic outcome for St. EOM who bragged of being “too bold and brazen for them people that run the art world”.  None the less, he created one of the most significant intuitive arts environments in the country. On October 22, 2016, Pasaquan will reopen to the public with great fanfare.  St. EOM’s spirit will certainly be in attendance.  

Sidebar

Kohler Foundation: http://www.kohlerfoundation.org/

Pasaquan tour information and links to digital images: https://art.columbusstate.edu/pasaquan.php

Where to stay: http://www.sign-of-the-dove.com/ a small B&B in Buena Vista

In Americus, 25 miles away: http://www.windsor-americus.com/

Richland Rum: www.richlandrum.com

Chocolate South: www.chocolatesouth.com

Artistic Adventures to Spark up your Year

Bootsy Collins rocks out at LEAF

            Picasso said that “the purpose of art is to wash away the dust of daily life from our souls.” Who couldn’t use more of that? Here are a few perspective-altering experiences to get onto your calendar now. 

Faerie Kin at LEAF

Boogie Down: Join hands in a circle of positivity at the family-friendly LEAF Festival in Black Mountain, N.C.  Stages are tucked around the beautiful lake.  Camping and cabins are perched on the mountainside.  You can start the day with soul stirring Gospel music or join an outdoor yoga class; dance all day to rock, world or Blues bands, sashay into contra lines and drum on the mountaintop until the wee hours. You’ll come home with legs like spaghetti from dancing so much; and with a playlist of favorite bands that you didn’t know you love. Next festival is May 11-14 with the enticing theme of Ignite and Inspire.  Or go for the fall foliage October 19-22. www.theleaf.org.  Find more festival ideas see www.musicfestivalwizard.com   Need encouragement?  Click here. 

Envelope Yourself in an Art Environment: A stunning renovation of St. EOM’s 7-acre creation, Pasaquan, recently opened to the public in Buena Vista Georgia.  The colorful compound contains 

undulating walls, ceremonial spaces, buildings and shrines that the artist felt compelled to create over the course of 30 years. It had almost crumbled to ruin but after a three year restoration it is now an amazingly odd, inspiring sight and a national treasure.  Open Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays from 10 to 5, donation $10. https://pasaquan.columbusstate.edu

Show Little Sister some Love:  Don’t compare it to Spoleto.  Savannah has its own cache.  The venues are charming, the crowds are smaller, the prices are reasonable and the music is stellar.  This year’s Savannah Music Festival’s line up includes a feat of strength:  Stewart Goodyear’s “Sonatathon” program where he’ll play all 32 of Beethoven’s piano sonatas in one day as well as a dazzling array of international musicians from Pakistan, Quebec, Canary Islands, Haiti, Brazil that contrast with headliners such as The Avett Brothers, Sarah Jarosz, the Travelin’ McCourys, Marcia Ball and James Cotton, not to mention the broad selection of classical concerts.  March 23 to April 8. 
www.savannahmusicfestival.org

Kirkland Smith's portrait of Steve Jobs
 made from computer parts. 

The town that Art Awoke:  Artfields is “the best thing since the invention of grits,” said Lake City gift shop owner Sophia Powell as she wrapped another purchase.  This brainchild of philanthropist Darla Moore has created huge economic impact and launched dozens of art careers. Hundreds of artists apply to exhibit their work in galleries, stores and restaurants. They’ve vying for prizes totaling $120,000.  Patrons flood the town for the free event, transforming sleepy Lake City into an art destination worth the short drive.  April 21 to 29.  Free. www.artfieldssc.org

Do it By the Book:  Climb into a book by reading them on location.  Relax on a chaise lounge at the King and Prince Hotel on St. Simon’s Island, Georgia while reading Eugenia Price’s Lighthouse .  Have high tea at Hopsewee Plantation in Georgetown while imagining the carryings-on at the infamous Sunset Lodge brothel featured in Keeper of the House. Reread Pat Conroy’s earliest book The Water is Wide on Daufuskee Island.  In Hot Springs, N.C. you can warm up from reading Cold Mountain or hike the Appalachian Trail to rediscover America as Bill Bryson did. The trail goes right down Main Street. Savannah has experienced a huge influx of visitors seeking out sights from Midnight in the Garden and Good and Evil . And that’s just a few fiction suggestions. 

Make it and Take It:  I surfed a creative wave at John C. Campbell and rode it all week.  The sprawling, beautiful campus north of Atlanta is an art retreat of the highest order, full of hundreds of fun-loving adults. It offers scores of week-long and shorter classes such as photography, cooking, gardening, blacksmithing, painting, dancing; something for everyone.  Beginners are common.  The food is wonderful, the rural setting gorgeous and the teachers couldn’t be more encouraging.  If you need a creative re-boot, this is the place.  www.folkschool.org 

Kiawah is Calling: Since 2004, Earl Klugh has been bringing world-renowned musicians to the five-

Boney James at Kiawah Jazz

star Sanctuary Hotel each November. They’re so popular that many folks book for the following year as they leave. So book your weekend of luxury now. As Sharon Baker, a frequent patron puts it, “Sitting outside along the Atlantic Ocean under starry skies, listening to world class jazz artists like Earl Klugh, Gerald Albright, Jonathan Butler and Michael McDonald, sipping wine...and enjoying the sublime luxury of The Sanctuary at Kiawah Island, that's why my husband Kenny Baker and I return again and again to the Kiawah Jazz Festival each November.” The resort also hosts a yearly Comedy Festival every January.  www.weekendofjazz.com/kiawah

Get out your calendar and plan an artistic escape. Your soul will thank you for it. 

Fruitcakes and Santa Claus

      My friend Sharon couldn’t restrain herself as we approached Claxton, Georgia on a road trip last December. “I bought some fruitcake once,” Sharon quipped. “I sent it overseas to guys in the army.”
      “How nice of you,” I said.
      “They dropped them instead of bombs,” she giggled. “They’re also good to use to balance a wobbly table leg, or as sand bags during hurricanes, or as speed bumps.” Fruitcakes are the most maligned of treats. But our preconceived notions of what some call “the worst gift ever” was dispelled when we got to the Claxton Bakery where employees were bustling to ship 90,000 pounds of cakes a day to places all over the world. Obviously, there are plenty of people who crave them. Claxton Bakery also the biggest industry in this central Georgia agricultural town.
      It began in 1910 when Savino Tos, an Italian immigrant and pastry chef, visited the town and was struck by the friendly people and lack of a bakery. He opened a small storefront where the aroma of fresh baked goods and his excellent ice cream earned him a loyal clientele. During the holidays he made his family’s fruitcake. One day an 11 year old boy wandered in looking for work and Savino gave him some chores to do. Albert Parker hustled to the bakery before school to light the ovens and prepare the dough and returned to work until dark. He did it for years. So when Savino wanted to retire in 1945, he sold the business to Albert who ran for 50 years. Today, his four children run the business which has prospered due to the company’s innovative strategies. Civic Clubs throughout North America use the cakes for fundraisers. They are featured in elaborate floats in televised parades.                                                                                                             

      “I feel obliged to buy some,” I whispered to Sharon. “At least for journalistic research.” So bought a few and we carried on to our next stop. Side trips are essential to long road trips, I believe. Our final destination was the outsider art sight Pasaquan near Columbus but I’d checked my favorite website www.roadsideamerica.com and come up with a few ideas en route. The Vidalia Onion Museum was intriguing. “See a hand-painted 3-D mural of the onion in culinary action, marvel at the World’s Smallest Onion Field…Best of all, you’ll get to see the Vidalia “Yumion”, one of the more terrifying mascots ever created,” it touted. “A terrifying mascot?! I’m in!” I goaded. But somehow it didn’t make the cut. Neither did the “U.S. National Tick Collection” in Statesboro which hosts the world’s largest collection of ticks and a machine that freeze dries them and coats them with gold, a suggestion to which Sharon simply responded “EEW!”
 

    But up the road was a must-see destination for Christmastime: Santa Claus, Geora. I was surprised to learn that there are many towns in the U.S. named for Christmas. There are North Poles in New York, Colorado and Alaska; a Bethlehem, Pennsylvania; and another Santa Claus in Indiana. This one is tiny, only a fifth of a square mile. It looks more like the gussied-up entrance to a fancy subdivision then a town. The tinseled-bedecked visitor’s center was locked but Sue Grisham walked across the courtyard from Town Hall when she saw us and unlocked the door. She said that they call themselves “The Town that Loves Children”. Decorations are up all year and the 200 residents live on streets like Candy Cane Lane and Reindeer Way. When the town was incorporated from a pecan grove in 1941, State representative Tom Fuller declared it to have “Ten people, 40 dogs and no reindeer.” Back then tons of north-south traffic passed nearby and it seemed like a good way to lure tourists. That all changed when I-95 was built. Today, the town attracts thousands of postal customers instead who want their Christmas cards stamped in Santa Claus. As we chatted with Sue, she was busy stamping 200 envelopes she’d received from Austria.

      Back in the car I wondered what to do with the fruitcakes I’d bought. One appealing possibility was to take it to Manitou Springs’ Great Fruitcake Toss in Colorado Springs where we could join enthusiasts from around the world in contests that “launch the hapless dessert into space with a variety of mechanical and pneumatic devises”. That sounded like the makings of another great road trip to us. But in the end, I slipped them under trees at holiday parties, put one in the mailbox for the postman and gave them as hostess presents. I’m worried though. I might receive the same cakes back in gifts to me this year. I guess I could just wrap them up again and wait for next Christmas.



If You Go

Claxton Fruit Cake: https://claxtonfruitcake.com/

Santa Claus, Georgia: https://georgia.gov/cities-counties/santa-claus