Hurtful comments from a teacher caused Jean Brejda to shelve her desire for the arts.
“I was in fourth or fifth grade, and the teacher held up my painting and said it was a piece of trash,” said Brejda, who has found a new joy in watercolors over the past year thanks to nurturing from her daughter.
MORE: Brejda Marries Art and Business at Studio
Brejda had an art exhibition in January at 4P Studios and some of her watercolors are part of the May the Fourth Be With You: A Star Wars-Themed Exhibition at the 600 Broad Building.
A former schoolteacher, Brejda encouraged her own children to pursue their artistic inclinations. Her daughter, Regina Brejda, owns 4P Studios, where Jean Brejda took her first class about six years ago.
It was a four-week course and focused on light elements.
During lockdown, she found herself with a lot of time on her hands and started tapping into her own artistic abilities, producing more than 50 paintings in 2020.
She said she’s tried acrylics but enjoys working with watercolors best.
The May The Fourth Be With You: A Star Wars-Themed Exhibition opened on May 4, but the opening reception will be from 7 to 9 p.m. May 7. Star Wars costumes are encouraged.
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Waxing Poetic, an exhibition of the works of Lala Mulherin Streett and Lou Ann Zimmerman, opened May 6 at Sacred Heart Cultural Center.
Streett is a signature and lifetime member of the Georgia Watercolor Society. Zimmerman is the retired owner of the Zimmerman Gallery and is a past president of the Georgia Watercolor Society and the Whiskey Painters of America.
Sacred Heart Cultural Center’s latest exhibition features Lala Mulherin Streett and Lou Ann Zimmerman. Courtesy photo 
Sacred Heart Cultural Center’s latest exhibition features Lala Mulherin Streett and Lou Ann Zimmerman. Courtesy photo
The exhibition will be on display through June 24 with an artist reception from 4 to 6 p.m., Thursday, June 17.
The City Gallery will feature Reckoning With Our Past: The 1970 Augusta Riot through June 30 at the gallery on the first floor of the Municipal Building, 535 Telfair St.
MORE: Artist Corner – Taylor Weatherford
The exhibition “explores an exhibit of historical documents, oral history quotes and artwork by local artists created in response to the memory of the May 1970 Augusta Riot. Artworks in this exhibit are by Devin Lovett, Warren Richard, Wesley Stewart and Matthew Thomas,” according to the Greater Augusta Arts Council’s website.
A rededication of the state marker in front of the building will be at 11 a.m. Tuesday, May 11. The artists will be present at the event.
Charmain Z. Brackett is the features editor for The Augusta Press. Reach her at [email protected].
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