By Staff
Art by James Connor
Special to The Star
May 6, 2001
Walk into the home of David and Terry Slife, and you are surrounded by artwork.
That "bug" and the paintings that adorn their walls make the couple's house a perfect setting for Meridian Museum of Art's annual Patron's Party, which will be held at the residence Saturday, from 7-9 p.m.
The Museum's Patron's Party is a special gala for museum members at the patron level and above, designed to honor patron members and to encourage new patron memberships.
The party features fine food and drink, live music by Little Kabana, and the outstanding artwork of special guest artist Ron Murray.
The Slife's initial introduction to the arts in Meridian resulted when they attended a reception for the museum's People's Choice Art Competition.
Among the other artists with work in the Slifes' collection are Jack Bartlett, James Conner, Bob Deen, Bill Dunlap, Charlyn King, Peyton Long, Doris Putnam, Helen Shapiro, Leslie Thompson and Murray.
Murray paints landscapes in classical style using both oils and water media and exhibits his work on a regular basis in Georgia and Mississippi. He is an architect with the firm of Neal, Kendust, &Murray P.C. in Columbus, Ga. For a number of years, he was a Professor of Architecture at Mississippi State University and an architect in Starkville, designing buildings in the area and surrounding communities.
About his work, Murray says: "I enjoy painting panoramic scenes. I've studied the landscape paintings of masters such as Corot, Millet, Constable, Pissaro and Inness a great deal, and I'm influenced by their compositional structures, color harmonies and working methods, but all of my pictures are related to particular places of my own experience, whether it be from my past travels to Europe and the Middle East or more local landscape views in Georgia, Alabama, and Mississippi.
Little Kabana, featuring guitarist Kenny Suire (aka "Kid Kabana") and bassist and vocalist Mike Wheeler, has earned an enviable reputation while performing throughout the Southeast. Famed locally for their acclaimed performances at clubs and events, the band has a wide-ranging repertoire that runs the gamut from the 1960s to the present and incorporates rock, funk, pop, jazz and original tunes.
For more information about the Patron's Party or museum membership, visit the museum at 628 25th Ave. (open Tuesday-Sunday, 1-5 p.m.) or call 693-1501.