Art has been a lifelong passion for Dr. Jo Carol Mitchell-Rogers, who will retire in May after 37 years as an art professor in the Department of Art and Design of the South Carolina School of the Arts at Anderson University.
Dr. Mitchell-Rogers, affectionately known to her students and others who know her as Dr. Dash, is displaying a variety of artwork in a solo show retrospective during February in the Vandiver Gallery of the Thrift Library on the Anderson University Campus. She will give an artist’s talk at 6:30 p.m. February 20 in the gallery.
Dr. Mitchell-Rogers credits her mentor from her days doing graduate work at the University of Georgia, Dr. Robert Nix; former Art and Design Department Chair Susan Wooten; and God for leading her into what has become a passion for teaching, inspiring many students over those 37 years. She has seen Anderson grow from a two-year college to the largest private institution in South Carolina. She has also seen the Art and Design program find a permanent home when the Rainey Fine Arts Center was constructed.
Although Dr. Mitchell-Rogers has considered herself an artist from a very young age, she didn’t initially see herself becoming an art professor. After completing a BFA at the University of Georgia she took what seemed to be the only job option where she lived—teaching art classes at the Greenville County Museum of Art, but it was then that her future was coming into focus.
“I had this sort of epiphany. I thought ‘Oh my gosh, it was almost like God was thumping me on the head saying, ‘Dr. Nix told me you were a teacher, and you weren’t listening.’ At that point I quickly got myself in gear and back to graduate school, because I was like ‘yes, of course I am.’ It felt natural. When I got out of graduate school with my MFA in drawing and painting, I started to look for teaching positions, full-time and part-time. I finished my MFA at Clemson, so Anderson was nearby. I sent my resumé in like I did for many other places.”
Then a teaching opportunity for a photography class opened at Anderson.
“I really credit Susan with giving me that initial chance to prove myself,” said Dr. Mitchell-Rogers. “I honestly thought ‘great, it’s a part-time job for a semester. I’ll get some experience. I’ll keep sending some resumés out.’” Then that year Susan was out on maternity leave and so Anderson asked me to stay full-time that next year and asked if I would be willing to do that. I said ‘of course, that would be great.’”
Wooten returned and as the art program grew, so did opportunities for Dr. Mitchell-Rogers to teach more courses and work with senior faculty members to plan degree programs that continue to be offered.
Over the years, Dr. Mitchell-Rogers has had numerous showings of her art and many commissioned projects to her credit, including one for the new AC Hotel on Greenville’s trendy West End. She also shares space with a dozen other artists at the Artbomb Studios in Greenville and maintains an active exhibition record as a painter, photographer and mixed-media artist. Her work has been included in more than 100 invitational solo and group exhibitions, more than 75 juried shows, and is included in numerous private collections throughout the country and abroad.
Dr. Mitchell-Rogers has been recognized on lthe AU campus and in the state for her teaching excellence as the recipient of the Boles Award for Excellence in Teaching, the Governor’s Distinguished Professor Citation (twice), and as the South Carolina Art Education Association Higher Education Art Educator of the Year.
Dr. Mitchell-Rogers’ works on display in the Vandiver Gallery are arranged chronologically, starting practically from the beginning. She quips that her mom never threw anything out and that she was a nursery school dropout, perplexing her teachers by breaking her crayons. Over the years she has found inspiration from many sources, which is evident in her exhibition.
In her art, Dr. Mitchell-Rogers explores the loss of loved ones; one grouping in particular recalls the loss of her grandmother and the subsequent sale of her home in Virginia. Another grouping takes common, ordinary items and makes them pop with her artistic touch. Other themes are drawn from random photos she found from around the mid Twentieth Century. In a group of photos she took while exploring abandoned mills and dilapidated houses with colleague Jane Dorn, she explores the interaction of colors and shapes in a group of photos. There’s also a group of pastels that recreate the energy of the human form in water—you can almost hear the splashing sounds. She even has a little fun with a group of whimsical subjects.
In her artists’ statement Dr. Mitchell-Rogers writes, “Color plays a pivotal role in the emotional and visual impact of the work. Several recurring themes appear throughout the newer pieces. Sometimes the work is playful or nostalgic or, at times, ambiguous and unsettling. The sense of loss remains a constant theme. I also find myself drawn to capturing moments of struggle, liberation, or escape.”
The public is welcome to an artists’ talk at 6:30 p.m. February 20 in the Vandiver Gallery.
More of Dr. Mitchell-Rogers’ work can be found on her website at jocarol.net.
