TIFTON— Students, alumni, faculty and staff members, and supporters of Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College recently gathered at the Agricultural Sciences building to witness the unveiling of the School of Agriculture and Natural Resources (SANR) Mural, “South Georgia Roots.”
For the past seven months, artist Jill Whitley has been tirelessly painting the mural in the left side hallway of the building while she worked with Dr. Mark Kistler, Dean of the SANR, to make the dream of the painting come to life.
“My vision for the mural was to have something to unify all the people, programs, and activities of the school,” Kistler said. “I think our artist, Jill Whitley, truly captured the spirit of the School. Everyone can identify with something on this mural.”
Whitley said she called the mural, “South Georgia Roots,” because “ABAC is a study of Southern agriculture and sciences. This is the only agricultural college in South Georgia, and many of the students are young and fresh out of high school, looking for a place to plant their roots. Therefore, the name reflects their ‘South Georgia Roots.’”
Kistler said there were 50 limited edition canvas prints of the mural to be auctioned and sold. The first one was auctioned for a final bid of $1,200 by Lasseter Equipment Group. Thirteen other prints were sold which raised over $7,300 for SANR student scholarships and professional development opportunities for ABAC faculty and staff.
Kistler said the remaining canvas prints are available for purchase. Interested persons who wish to purchase the prints can contact Vonda Fenn, SANR Program Support Specialist, at (229) 391-5067 or vfenn@abac.edu for more information.
###
