DEMOPOLIS–This Sunday, Demopolis residents will get a chance to see how well the arts are flourishing in the city, thanks to the Two Rivers Arts Council.

The Council is hosting its third annual Artists Showcase this Sunday, June 5, from 2 to 4 p.m. at the Demopolis Public Library. Admission is free.

The Showcase is designed to give attendees a sampling of the wide variety of art and artists being produced in the Demopolis area. Sheron Laney, Council official and coordinator of the Showcase, says that visitors will be able to enjoy virtually every kind of art under the sun.

“We’ve got music, we’ve got vocalists, we’ve got the visual arts, the poetry is a new addition…there’s all these different mediums all right there together in our lovely library,” she says.

Among the visual art displays will be photography, painting in various styles, sculpture in both wood and clay, and pottery.

Laney says that one goal of the Showcase is to encourage others in the community to follow the lead of the artists on display, even if only as a hobby.

“We hope other people are inspired to do something themselves. A lot of people want to but think that only experts or professionals can make art. But if they’ll try it, a lot of times they’ll discover that they like it and have a talent for it,” she says. “A few of our artists could go on, I think, to make a living from it. But most of us, of course, are just doing it for the fun of it, for our family and friends.”

Another positive aspect of the Showcase, Laney says, is to let the community understand how many artists are producing quality work right here in Demopolis.

“I think it’s interesting to get to know our local artists. It’s surprising how talented a community we have,” she says. “It’s a different dimension a lot of people aren’t used to seeing.”

As more and more artists become part of the showcase, however, Laney expects more and more people to realize how artistic Demopolis can be.

“It’s grown every year,” she says. “The first year we had 12, then 22 last year, and this year we have 28 artists, and that’s not including the students of Karen Davidson. It’s been a big hit.”

Participating in this year’s Showcase will be: Photography: Joseph Turner, Katherine Meador, Michael Clements, Audrey Hamilton, Marianne Baker, Yvette Lawrence; Painting: Louise Reynolds, Beverly Youngblood, Rebecca Marlowe, Sheron Laney, Susan Keel, Hannah Keel, Jane Latture, Linda Ray, Betsy coplin, Marie Greene, Roberta Bailey, and Karen Davidson with students Morgan Saliba, Shelby Stamback, Michael Mote, Holly Blair, Sarah Watson, and Sutton Aiken; Sculpture: Dick McDonald (wood) and Robert Lambert (clay); Pottery: Carolyn Cowling and Anna Noel Woolf; Vocalists: Laura Clements, Melissa Cooke, and Courtnei Horton; Musician/Vocalists: Anna Low and Jason Low; Poetry: Jerry Hinnen.