The Hattiesburg Arts Council provides collaborative, innovative, and accessible programming in the arts, that promotes artists in all disciplines and enhances the quality of life in our community.
Pine Belt Quilters Biennial Exhibit
The Pine Belt Quilters are bringing back their biennial quilt show with a special exhibit of quilts, a drawing for a spectacular handmade quilt, live demonstrations and more.
The event is sponsored by the Hattiesburg Arts Council. Admission is free! The exhibit will be open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday, April 18, at the Rebekah Stark Johnson Community Arts Center, 825 N. Main St.
The Art of Flowers and Gardens
Join the Hattiesburg Arts Council and the Hub City Garden Club for a one-of-a-kind experience, with presentations by gardening experts, art and garden vendors and more. Admission is free!
The event will be from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Saturday, April 11, 2026, at the Rebekah Stark Johnson Community Arts Center, 825 N. Main St. Presentations begin at 9:30 a.m.
There will be two half-hour sessions with Hub City Garden Club members and area gardening professionals running concurrently throughout the morning.
Presenters include:
• Sue Pace: “Growing Veggies from Your Kitchen”
• Judy Brackman: “Re-think/Re-imagine - A New Interpretation of Planting Containers”
• Paulette LeBlanc: “From Yard to Vase” arranging
• Lilith Hansen: “Propagating Your Houseplants”
• Nick Adams, Hattiesburg Botanical Gardens: “Lessons Learned the Hard Way - Gardening through Failure”
• Laura Canfield, Elements 4 Life: “Happy Potter; Happy Plants”
UNreadable, UNfaithful and UNdead?
The Hattiesburg Arts Council's Senior Reading Program is back with a new show at 6 p.m. Thursday, April 2, at the Hattiesburg Cultural Center, 723 N. Main St.
The show stars newcomers Eva 'Tootsie' Jenkins and Emma Connolly, and Legacy Actors Steve Clyburn, Xiomara Bryant, Debra Topp and Kathy Edwards.
The show will also feature guest appearances by veteran actors Tom Hardy and Tammy Matlock.
UNreadable, UNfaithful and UNdead? is produced and directed by stage veteran Sherri Marengo, founder of Legacy Actors Theatre Experience. The program features three plays that will have the audience roaring with laughter.
• UNREADABLE: What happens when you can't read the director's handwritten script? Some really mixed-up actors!
• UNFAITHFUL: Is it better to be the cheatER or the cheat-EE? The husband may never figure it out.
• UNDEAD- Madame Irene is contacting the spirits for a newly engaged couple's good wishes before marriage. However, the fiancee is getting some answers to questions she didn't even ask.
The Petal Arts Council is partnering with LATE and the Hattiesburg Arts Council on the program and support from the Mississippi Arts Commission and Mississippi Theatre Association.
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Adult Best of Show: Marius Vincze for Solitude
Youth Best of Show: Charles Reynolds for The Eye of the Camera
Hattiesburg Arts Council announces winners of 2026 Amateur Photography Competition
We had a great showing for the annual Amateur Photography Competition, judged each year by professional photographers. We had more than 70 entries in the Adult Division and nine entries in the Youth Division. Awards were given in each of five categories, and Best of Show, with cash awards, was given to one adult and one youth photographer.
Adult Division
Animals category
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Bethany Sharp, First Place, The Sentrys
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Ray Roberts, Second Place, Lunch on the Chilkat
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Mike McCallister, Third Place, Bernice in Church
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Rebecca Makayla Valdez, honorable mention, Shake it Baby
Design category
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Marcia Landen, First Place, London Chimneys
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Gayle Warwick, Second Place, Lean on Me
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Marcia Landen, Third Place, Library - Look Up
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Lisa Foster, honorable mention, Roy's Squeeze-In
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Gayle Warwick, honorable mention, Take a Letter Maria
Landscape category
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Marius Vincze, First Place, Solitude
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Marius Vincze, Second Place, Roald Amundsen
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Marius Vincze, Third Place, Meteora Monasteries
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Kathy Lee, honorable mention, Fading History
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Gayle Warwick, honorable mention, At the Graves
Nature category
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Marcia Landon, First Place, Dover Storm
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Ray Roberts, Second Place, Lone Eagle
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Kathryn Edwards, Third Place, Brave New World
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Rebecca Makayla Valdez, honorable mention, Dancing on Water
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Marius Vincze, honorable mention, Bouquets
People category
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Marius Vincze, First Place, Second Street
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Airon Whitt, Second Place, Juancito
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Kathy Lee, Third Place, When Light Catches a Smile
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Russell W. York, honorable mention, Yay Team!
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Youth Division
Animals category
Charles Reynolds, First Place, The Eye of the Camera
Design category
Charles Reynolds, First Place, The Light that Darkness Missed
Keeton Smith, Second Place, Windmill Climber
Landscape category
Hamilton Jones, First Place, Creek of the Asulkan
Keeton Smith, Second Place, The Workshop
Keeton Smith, Third Place, Vivid Summer
Keeton Smith, honorable mention, Freestyle
Nature category
Charles Reynolds, First Place, Birds of a Feather Flock Together
Keeton Smith, Second Place, Center Piece
Hattiesburg Arts Council is pleased to welcome its new executive director, Elizabeth Henry. She has lived in Hattiesburg for nearly five years, moving with her husband to the Hub City from the Washington, D.C., area.
Since becoming a Hattiesburger in Spring 2021, Elizabeth and her husband have immersed themselves in all Hattiesburg has to offer, including the numerous arts events they have discovered.
“We like everything this wonderful little town has to offer,” she said. “There’s just lots to do. It’s hard to decide sometimes what to do. There’s a lot to love.”
Her enthusiasm is contagious. We hope to see many more Pine Belt arts lovers catch the same fever.
Elizabeth is experienced in event planning, award management and other organizational and governance skills through her work with the American Statistical Association and the American Institute of Architects.
The Louisiana native earned a Bachelor of Architecture degree in urban design from the University of Oklahoma.
Elizabeth’s first day at the helm was January 5, 2026. We will provide information about a meet-and-greet reception for Elizabeth in the near future. For now, we’re giving her time to get her feet wet and figure out her daily routine.
Thanks to all of you for your continued support of the arts and Hattiesburg Arts Council, which has been going strong for 55+ years!
All the best, Jeanne Gillespie, president, Hattiesburg Arts Council Board of Directors
Hattiesburg Arts Council welcomes new executive director