For years, the late Arthur and Lois Lusty worked to build up the arts in Orangeburg.

The retired educators from Michigan spearheaded the movement to create an arts center in the building formerly known as the River Pavilion. Today the Orangeburg County Fine Arts Center is the location for recitals, exhibitions and classes in everything from Spanish to oil painting.

George Ware, a friend, said, "They were just an amazing couple. The way they took to Orangeburg and all the things they did while they were here -- it just contributed so much to the arts in Orangeburg."

Lois Lusty was 89 years old when she passed away in 2005. Art Lusty died years earlier, in 1990. But their contributions to the Orangeburg arts community live on.

This month, original works by Lois Lusty are available for sale during an exhibit in the arts center's Lusty Gallery. The 24 framed paintings, donated by the Lustys' family, will be quite a bargain, too, in keeping with Lois Lusty's desire that art be available to the masses.

All proceeds from the sales will go to the arts center, Executive Director Beth Thomas said, and purchased works will remain on display throughout October.

"The family said she and her husband were so fond of this place," Thomas said. So the Lustys' daughter, Mary Chapman, donated the paintings to the arts center to sell.

"She said, 'Sell them for your own benefit, and all that I ask is that you price them very reasonably because mother would not want it any other way.' So the paintings are very reasonably priced," Thomas said.

The acrylic and watercolor paintings are priced between $35 and $50, Thomas said, and an after-hours reception and sale will be held from 5 to 7 p.m. Tuesday, Oct. 13, at the center. Only one work, a print, is not an original by Lois Lusty, she said.

"People who knew the Lustys, I'm sure some of them would be very interested in getting these paintings," Thomas said. "Everything else she painted is in the hands of the family. This is all that's left."

Among the works are paintings of the North Road mansion she and her husband lived in while in Orangeburg, Thomas said. And there's a painting of the old Culler house on North Road, snow scenes, a painting of her husband's boat, and a portrait of American photographer, activist and film director Gordon Parks.

"There's a nice variety here ... a lot of different styles, actually," Thomas said.

In an interview with The Times and Democrat in 1995, Lois Lusty said during her 24 years as a special education teacher, she found great use for art in her classroom.

"Art is a way of association between emotions and development. It gives children an outlet for all kinds of emotions," she said. "And it is a reference for teachers that can be read like a book. Art is a tool to be used toward a more adjusted life."

The Lustys moved to Orangeburg after seeing the historic Hampton Culler house was for sale, thinking it would make a nice retirement project. While in negotiations for the house, a dilapidated building in Edisto Memorial Gardens caught their eye.

"I liked it so much, I told Art if we didn't get the Culler house, perhaps we could get that one," Lois Lusty had said.

But they did get the Hampton Culler house and, once in Orangeburg, Lois Lusty joined "Painters and Putterers," which later became the Orangeburg League of the Arts.

"We had no place to get together and paint," she said in the 1995 interview. "Often, the group gathered at my house to paint and sometimes for informal classes."

It dawned on them that the building in the gardens would be a perfect place for artists to use. The Lustys and others proposed leasing the building from the city. Once officials were assured they would not be financially responsible for the building, they accepted the proposal. The group began soliciting donations, and curious passersby joined in the manual labor.

"The credit for the building really goes to all the volunteers," Lois Lusty said. "They are the ones that took time to care."

The completed project became known as the Orangeburg Arts Center, now the OCFAC.

Chapman said her mother loved art and would like that some of her paintings are being sold to benefit the arts center.

"She could paint just about anything, and draw just about anything," she said. "She was a wonderful lady. And she didn't believe in selling her paintings to people -- she just gave them away.

"She just loved nature and would sit and draw trees and forests and barns and people and everything. She just had a very good eye for color.

"It was like a hobby with her. She didn't do it to be a professional. And she just thought you should give of your talents to help other people."

Chapman, of Aiken, said her parents put so much of themselves into the arts center.

"My mother and dad were very active people in Orangeburg. They're the ones that made sure the arts center was there," she said. "They ran the arts center. They volunteered every day. They taught classes, had classes for the people. They even had classes at their home, painting classes when it was real pretty outside.

"My mother used to get artists to come and donate their time to teach kids to paint, as well as adults."

Art Lusty supported his wife in her artistic pursuits, she said, even learning how to frame his wife's works.

"My dad was the builder. He would make frames for photos and pictures and paintings," Chapman said. "He was an amateur astronomer. He built his own telescope and put his own observatory in his house in Orangeburg. ... He built a room that opened up to the world.

"They were very talented people."

George Ware said he and his wife Carol have two of Lois Lusty's paintings hanging in their Orangeburg home.

"As close as we were, I just love having them hanging up in the house," he said. "There probably isn't a week that goes by that I don't think about them."

Carol Ware said Lois Lusty was very interested in getting people involved in the arts.

"She was so interested in teaching people, seeing that people just got involved in it. That was just her life, the arts. They were in a lot of other things, but art was her main thing," she said.

George Ware said with hard work and perseverance, the Lustys were able to raise the money to make the arts center what it is today.

"They loved that building. They put so much time and energy into that building, and they donated a lot to it, also," he said. "Art, he was the driving force in getting that building converted into an art center. He was there every day doing whatever he could."

He said although Lois Lusty enjoyed producing works of art, "she really enjoyed more so encouraging other artists to do what they could. She wanted adults and young kids to have exposure to art.

"She really didn't want to have to stand out there in the spotlight. She was kind of back there, pushing other people to do."

T&D Features Editor Wendy Jeffcoat Crider can be reached by e-mail at wjeffcoat@timesanddemocrat.com or by telephone at 803-533-5546. Discuss this and other stories online at TheTandD.com.

'We are for the community'

The coming months will bring several opportunities to enjoy the Orangeburg County Fine Arts Center.

The 12th annual Silent Auction and Wine Tasting fund-raising event will be held from 7 to 9 p.m. Monday, Nov. 2. Tickets are $10, and guests will enjoy wine and hors d'oeuvres and have the opportunity to bid on original works of art by local artists, tickets to Orangeburg Part-Time Players productions and items donated by area businesses.

"Most people will walk away with something for a great deal," Executive Director Beth Thomas said. "The fund-raisers that we have are not just for raising funds -- they're made affordable, and they're fun fund-raisers. People come here and enjoy it. It's a fun activity. It's a successful thing that people really look forward to."

Thomas said that while the ticket price has increased this year, the event is still an affordable option for those interested in attending and supporting the arts center. The wine tasting and Showcase Orangeburg in the spring are OCFAC's two major annual fund-raisers.

"But it's not enough to keep the place going," Thomas said. "We get support from some businesses ... and grants, but with that, we keep our fee to a minimum to allow everyone to participate. We are not an elite organization. We are for the community.

"Art is for everyone. Everyone should have the opportunity to see it, hear it and enjoy it."

Another popular event -- the OCFAC-sponsored Mayors' Festival of Wreaths -- will be held Nov. 23-Dec. 6 at the arts center. The donated wreaths will also be displayed at the three Orangeburg branches of First Citizens Bank from Nov. 13-20. Bidding will only be available at the arts center, Thomas said.

Thomas said like so many other organizations, the weak economy has hurt the arts center.

"It's very tight," she said. "We're not being extravagant. We have to continue to bring money in. We're not resting on our laurels. It's operating costs, that's what is very expensive for us."

While there have been rumors about the arts center having to close its doors due to lack of funding, Thomas said the financial situation is not as dire as that -- yet.

"We really are not at that point. But if we don't have a continuing support -- we can not make it on fund-raising alone," she said. "The fund-raisers we have help enormously, but they do not help with our total support. We are dependent on contributions."

For more information on OCFAC events or to make a donation, call 803-536-4074.

A brief history of the Orangeburg County Fine Arts Center

In 1983, the Orangeburg League of the Arts, under the direction of Arthur and Lois Lusty, approached city council and asked for a lease on the building known as the River Pavilion with the purpose of developing it into an arts facility.

This lease was granted, and renovations began largely with volunteer hands. Funding was provided through the National Endowment for the Arts; the state of South Carolina; Sen. Marshall B. and Margaret Williams; the Lustys; the S.C. Arts Commission; the S.C. Department of Parks, Recreation and Tourism; the Dick Horne Foundation; local businesses and individual contributions.

In 1984, the Orangeburg Arts Council was chartered as a nonprofit organization, housed in the Orangeburg Arts Center.

In 1997, the city dedicated the Terrace Garden in memory of J. Andrew Berry, longtime director of the Dick Horne Foundation.

The Orangeburg Arts Council's name was officially amended in 1998 to the Orangeburg County Fine Arts Center.

The OCFAC is supported through fund-raisers, a membership program, organization and business contributions, the Dick Horne Foundation, county and city budgets and the S.C. Arts Commission. It is governed by a board of directors and managed by an executive director and administrative assistant.

Because of its location in Edisto Memorial Gardens, the center plays host to visitors throughout the year. To date, visitors have come from 48 states and 17 countries.

In addition to offering classes and workshops for adults and children in a variety of visual and performing arts disciplines, the OCFAC provides subgrants to local artists and arts-producing organizations; sponsors lectures and book signings; hosts the popular Lunch in the Terrace Garden in May and October; showcases local artists' works; presents concerts and recitals featuring local and touring performers; partners with a number of community activities, including the Orangeburg Festival of Roses and The Sights and Sounds of Christmas, and more.

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