Mississippi Art Collection:
Hancock County Welcome Center – Pearlington
The Hancock County Welcome Center in Pearlington features a curated collection of original works by Mississippi artists that celebrate the cityscapes, history, and culture of the Magnolia State, offering a creative glimpse into Mississippi life. Each of the state’s welcome centers showcases its own unique selection of Mississippi art, giving visitors a distinctive introduction to the creative people and noteworthy places that shape the state. The collection was curated in partnership with Pacesetter Gallery, whose support helps highlight the remarkable talent and vision of Mississippi’s artists.
Andrea Kostyal
Hometown: Hattiesburg, MS
Mississippi Coast
This painting presents an abstract interpretation of a harbor and lighthouse scene inspired by the Mississippi Gulf Coast, from Moss Point to Bay St. Louis, including Pass Christian Harbor and the Biloxi Lighthouse.
The canvas bursts with vibrant blended colors, broad brushstrokes, a textured, layered style, and a sense of coastal atmosphere. The water’s surface reflects the boats, lights, and the colorful sky, adding depth and movement to the scene.
Artist Bio
Andrea Kostyal is a studio artist living in Hattiesburg, Mississippi. She is the co-founder of the Singing River Art Studio and the Artists Across Borders artist group. She is currently serving as the visual art coordinator for FestivalSouth.
Originally from Hungary and trained in fine art, she has been a resident of Hattiesburg for 16 years. For the past 20 years, she has specialized in abstract, dreamlike, mixed-media cityscapes that reflect her interests in unity, diversity, and equality by emphasizing the unique architecture of different places and cultures.
Her paintings have been invited to solo and group exhibitions at museums such as the Mississippi Museum of Art and the Meridian Museum of Art, universities, including the University of Connecticut, the University of Southern Mississippi, and William Carey University, and many galleries, as well as juried exhibitions regionally, nationwide, and internationally. Her paintings are represented by The Caron Gallery in Tupelo and Laurel, The Attic Gallery in Vicksburg, and Negrotto’s Gallery in Gulfport.
She teaches workshops on her unique photo transfer technique for organizations and groups around the state. In the past couple of years, she has been commissioned by Main Street Vicksburg and the Hattiesburg Alliance for Public Art to create large murals and paint several utility boxes as public art projects, in which she integrated her design with the specific location and the viewers themselves. She received an Individual Visual Artists fellowship for her Public Art Murals from the Mississippi Arts Commission in 2024.
Carolyn Busenlener
Hometown: Pearlington, MS
Striving for Balance
Striving for Balance was inspired by my desire to achieve balance in both my life and my artwork. I find balance in my life in rural Mississippi by observing nature and painting in my studio, situated on scenic White’s Bayou in Pearlington, Mississippi. Although I grew up in New Orleans, I thrive artistically and personally living next to nature, observing the changing tides and the wildlife. I balance this quiet life with trips to the nearby scenic town of Bay St. Louis and other coastal communities.
In this painting, I strive to create balance by quieting the energy of my mark-making with large areas of off-white, giving the viewer’s eye a place to rest.
Artist Bio
Carolyn Busenlener is an abstract expressionist painter, mainly working in acrylic paint on canvas. She is influenced by the beauty of nature surrounding her studio in Pearlington, Mississippi, and her life experiences. Her art practice has given her joy and purpose for over fifty years.
Carolyn grew up in New Orleans. She received a BFA with a major in painting from Tulane University. After Katrina, she retired from teaching art at St. Martin’s Episcopal School, moved to Mississippi, and became a full-time artist.
Throughout her career, Carolyn has garnered recognition. In 2012 and 2018, she was awarded the Mississippi Arts Commission Visual Arts Fellowship. In 2014, she was invited to participate in the Mississippi Museum of Art Invitational. She received the Jane Crater Hiatt Fellowship in 2014. The Mississippi Museum of Art now has one of her paintings.
Carolyn’s art is in various Ochsner medical facilities, in lawyers’ and architects’ offices, and in schools and private homes. Participating in group shows around the country, Carolyn has won numerous awards. In 2025, Carolyn was awarded “Best in Show” by juror McArthur Binion in the National Juried Painting Exhibition at the University of Southern Mississippi.
Her paintings can be found at Hillyer House in Ocean Springs, Mississippi, Sassy Bird in Bay St. Louis, Mississippi, and Bee Street Gallery in Dallas, Texas.
A studio visit can be arranged by contacting Carolyn Busenlener through her website, BusenlenerArt.com, or by emailing her at cbusen1@yahoo.com.
Chane Monster 19
Hometown: Jackson, MS
SHEEP + NOISE II
Sheep + Noise II is a two-piece set, originally inspired by Sheep + Noise I, created three years ago. Pixelation breaks away from the masses of colors in this abstract work. Just as only a brave few dreamers do, from the masses of people who fear that chasing dreams is way too risky. This is a direct reflection of my “Live Fast Dream Forever” mantra that pushes me to create works for the world to wander past.
Artist Bio
Chane is an abstract painter from Jackson, MS. His art career started just a few years ago, in 2019, inspired by the art scenes in New York and London, where he was selling his t-shirt designs to the masses. Although not traditionally trained as an artist, he has been blessed to have his works exhibited from New York to LA and throughout the South.
George Ann McCullough
Hometown: Ocean Springs, MS
Magnolia, Reassembled
As some of you may already know, the magnolia is the state flower of Mississippi, but that’s not why I paint it. And yes, it’s beautiful: waxy green leaves, soft white blooms, unforgettable fragrance. Unforgettable for me because I’m allergic. So that’s my conflict. I adore the beauty, but cannot stand the fragrance. That tension became the inspiration for this painting.
Magnolia, Reassembled is an abstract response to the magnolia tree, expressed through fragmented forms, colors, and layered surfaces, rather than direct depiction. Petals and leaves become structure and weight, suggesting growth, memory, and reassembly. The magnolia is presented as a presence to be felt rather than an image to be recognized.
Artist Bio
George Ann McCullough is a mixed-media artist residing in Ocean Springs, Mississippi. She holds degrees in art, art education, and advanced studies from Texas Lutheran University, the University of Houston, and the Arrowmont School of Crafts, respectively. Ms. McCullough is a Mississippi Arts Commission Grant Recipient. She is an active member of the Mississippi Art Colony and has attended the Tougaloo Art Colony. She is a charter member of the National Museum of Women in the Arts and an artist member of the Mississippi State Committee of the National Museum of Women in the Arts, having been recognized as an Honored Artist for 2015. Her work has won numerous awards and has been included in regional, national, and international exhibitions. Her paintings are included in the permanent collection of the Meridian Museum of Art and the Kenneth Quinn Collection at Mississippi College. She was one of the spotlighted artists at The Five Senses of Ohr: A Party For Your Senses in 2019 and again in 2025. Her most recent exhibition, A Series of Series, A Retrospective, was at the Duckett Gallery in the Mary C. O’Keefe Cultural Center, Ocean Springs, MS, November 2023–February 2024.
Jerrod Partridge
Hometown: Ocean Springs, MS
Front Beach, Ocean Springs
Biloxi Bay is an ideal setting for enjoying time on the water. The gentle sweep of the Biloxi Bridge, the assortment of boats collected around the Ocean Springs Yacht Club, the repetition of graphic lines, and the bright colors of sails come together to create an inviting vignette of life on a warm summer morning here on the Mississippi Gulf Coast.
Artist Bio
Jerrod is a full-time studio artist, educator, and curator on the Mississippi Gulf Coast. He has exhibited his work in Japan, Italy, and across the United States. Jerrod and his wife, Jessie, own Palmette, a flower shop and art gallery located in downtown Ocean Springs, MS. He leads Visual Explorations trips to Europe each summer and also organizes Art Space 86 projects, which use events to provide opportunities for artists and enrich communities through art. Jerrod’s work can be seen at Palmette or by appointment at his studio in Ocean Springs; Fischer Galleries in Jackson, MS; Southside Gallery in Oxford, MS; Claire Elizabeth Gallery in New Orleans, LA; and various temporary locations through Art Space 86. Jerrod earned a Master of Fine Arts degree from the New York Academy of Art in 2004. During his undergraduate years studying graphic design at Mississippi College, he also spent a semester in London, England, studying art history. Jerrod is a 2011 recipient of a Visual Arts Fellowship from the Mississippi Arts Commission and was named Distinguished Alumnus of the Year for the Mississippi College Department of Art in 2017. He was awarded the Jane Crater Hiatt Fellowship through the MS Museum of Art in 2025. Learn more about Jerrod and his work on his website, JerrodPartridge.com, and you can follow him on Instagram @jerrodpartridge.
Jules Williamson
Hometown: Brandon, MS
Stalking the Shallows
This painting was inspired by the Mississippi Sandhill Crane Wildlife Refuge, established in 1975 to protect the critically endangered Mississippi Sandhill crane. I wanted to explore the contrast between what we easily see and what often goes unnoticed. Above the water’s surface, a Sandhill crane stands in the shallow, cooling itself from the Mississippi heat. Below the water, bluegill fish quietly glide through the aquatic plants. The painting invites the viewer to consider the hidden life that exists just out of sight, yet is equally vital.
Artist Bio
Jules Williamson is an artist based in Brandon, Mississippi. She has been painting since she was a child, and her passion for art has grown stronger over the years. In her early years, her love for animals led her to wildlife realism as her main focus in art. Each piece is filled with intricate details that draw the viewer in, inviting them to truly appreciate the beauty of the animal world. She has always been drawn to the beauty of nature and its ever-changing colors and textures.
She constantly experiments with different techniques and styles in her work. In her later years, she has ventured into the vibrant and dynamic world of contemporary art, exploring bold colors, abstract shapes, and engaging textures. Her art is a reflection of her journey through life, capturing moments and emotions and expressing them in a playful and free-spirited manner. Her preferred medium is acrylics, but she is always open to trying new techniques and experimenting with different styles. As an artist, she is constantly pushing herself to grow with each piece she creates.
She has been creating art for more than 20 years, and her work has been featured in various galleries across Mississippi and parts of Florida.
For more information and to see her additional works, visit Pacesetter Gallery in Flowood, Mississippi, and pacesettergallery.com
Katelyn Harbaugh
Hometown: Madison, MS
Mississippi Blooming
Mississippi Blooming is a love letter to the state that I call home. This textured, expressive oil painting is centered on the magnolia tree—our state flower and a quiet landmark in nearly every Mississippi town—this painting celebrates both where we’ve been and where we’re going.
To the Mississippi traveler, this magnolia is an invitation. Its blossoms speak of front-porch mornings, shaded back roads, and town squares where history and hospitality meet. No matter where your journey takes you—coastal breezes along the Gulf, winding trails in our forests, vibrant arts districts, or small towns rich with stories—you will find a magnolia standing as a familiar welcome.
This work reflects what I love most about Mississippi: roots that run deep and a landscape shaped by remarkable diversity. From towering pines and ancient oaks to blooming dogwoods and magnolias, our foliage mirrors the people of this state—layered, resilient, and full of life. The magnolia’s strength and beauty symbolize Mississippi’s established arts scene, where tradition and innovation flourish side by side.
Mississippi Blooming is about today’s Mississippi—alive with creativity, culture, and experiences waiting to be discovered. Through the arts, we invite travelers to see beyond the postcard and into the heart of the state: a place where beauty is rooted in the land, the people, and the stories still unfolding.
Artist Bio
Katelyn Harbaugh is an artist living in Madison, Mississippi, with her husband and four children. She graduated from Belhaven University with a degree in Art, and her work since then has truly been a joy-filled and rewarding pursuit. Katelyn’s art reflects nature stumbled upon in day-to-day life and is often inspired by scripture and hymns. She enjoys exploring a variety of mediums and styles, primarily working in watercolor and oils. She uses vibrant layers created with gentle or expressive mark-making to evoke memories, joy, or hope for the viewer. She is grateful that her art is welcomed into hearts and homes.
Katelyn recently painted live at the Flowood Nature Park for the En Plein Air Painting Competition in April of 2024, sponsored by Pacesetter Gallery and Mississippi Wildlife, Fisheries, and Parks, receiving the People’s Choice Award.
Kit Barksdale
Hometown: Bay St. Louis, MS
Pearl River Travels to Stennis, MS
The painting depicts the Pearl River as it flows into the Stennis Space Center property, which is America’s primary rocket propulsion site. These wetlands have many navigable marshes that can bring in the huge rocket engines that would be too large and heavy to come in by any other means of transportation.
Artist Bio
Kit Barksdale moved to Bay St.Louis in 2017. At that time, the accomplished glass and textile craftsman turned her attention to canvas paintings and collage. Her work depicts the outdoors she experienced while hiking, kayaking, and camping—just being in the natural beauty called Mississippi. She remains drawn to the islands and wildlife so intertwined with the coastal environs.
Patt Odom
Hometown: Hattiesburg/Petal, MS
Horn Island Adventures
My artwork is inspired by my love for the Gulf Coast, particularly Ocean Springs, where I have lived since the seventies. My love comes from the water and the sound it makes when it caresses the sandy beach. The Barrier Islands, the many boats and fishermen, the sailboats, and the annual regattas. I am also inspired by the many species of birds, with which I feel especially akin. However, the pelicans and seagulls are most inspirational. The greatest sound in the world is from the seagulls calling for food. I see personality traits in pelicans’ interactions that remind me of my many friends and family. In fact, I love painting that analogue. Yet my favorite inspiration comes from this analogue of comparing people and objects: creatures crawling in and out of the water, the tall pine trees and their funny shapes stretched across the barrier islands like a high school band stretched equidistant apart waiting for the music and wind to start their dance, while the boats wait patiently for their travelers to come back from their adventure.
Being on the islands and exploring the isolated outer banks makes me feel at home among all the unusual creatures.
Artist Bio
Patt Odom is an art educator and professional painter with degrees in Drawing, Painting, and Art Education from the University of Southern Mississippi. She has studied fine art with many major artists, both nationally and internationally. She works in oil, acrylic, gouache, and multi-media paint.
After her education, Patt moved to Ocean Springs, where she taught fine art in the public schools, and spent the last 20 years at Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College, where she was head of the Visual Arts Program and the Director of the Fine Arts Gallery.
Her work can be found in the collections of museums, colleges, and corporations. She has worked for the U.S. Navy and the U.S. Air Force, as well as for commercial clients such as the Birdhouse Skateboard Company and many others.
Some of the numerous awards Patt has received include Who’s Who in America, Who’s Who Among American Teachers, Outstanding Educators of Community Colleges, the National Teachers Award of Excellence, and Instructor of the Year at Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College. She was the Honored Mississippi Treasured Artist and Educator by the National Museum of Art in Washington, and has received many other painting awards, too numerous to note.
Patt Odom is represented by The Attic Gallery of Vicksburg, Hillyer House in Ocean Springs, My Happy Place in Ocean Springs, and Hallie Ward Interiors and Gallery in Meridian.
Now, in her daily life, Patt commissions work through her Art Studio in Ocean Springs, Mississippi.
Susan Wellington
Hometown: Flowood, MS
The Hayfield
Mississippi reveals an extraordinary range of landscapes as one travels north to south and east to west. I am especially drawn to scenes that are quietly vanishing from the land. The weathered barns and aging silos hold a particular significance for me, their presence rich with memory and meaning. Red dirt roads that lead toward old home places invite curiosity and reflection, urging me to follow them to their quiet conclusions. Set among golden native grasses and the occasional wild turkey, these scenes carry a gentle nostalgia, transporting me to a simpler, slower time.
Artist Bio
Born in Sasebo, Japan, and rooted in Mississippi for most of her life, Susan has always felt a deep connection to the South’s landscape and spirit. She earned her Bachelor of Science in Education with a concentration in Art from Mississippi College in 1978. Although life took her away from the studio for many years, she returned to painting with renewed passion once her children were grown—embracing a long-held desire to create and express.
Susan’s artistic journey is one of continuous growth and exploration. Unlike many artists who specialize in a single medium, she has pursued mastery across watercolor, pastel, and oil painting. Her dedication to learning has led her to study under master artists such as Roger Dale Brown, Stephanie Birdsall, and Joe Anna Arnett. She also credits her friend and mentor, Bob Tompkins, for encouraging her development. Deeply inspired by the writings of historic art figures like John Carlson and Edgar Payne, Susan blends classical principles with hands-on experience—especially through painting en plein air, which has transformed the way she sees and interprets the world around her.
Drawing inspiration from the places she knows best—her Mississippi home and the scenes discovered on her travels—Susan paints from life, striving to capture not only what she sees, but also what she feels. Her work seeks to reveal the quiet beauty and subtle color found in each subject, creating a visual narrative that stirs emotion and memory in the viewer.
Susan’s talent and vision have been recognized through awards and juried selections at local, state, and national levels. She has been recognized as a “Fav 15%” winner by the Bold Brush Art Competition and has exhibited in three Oil Painters of America National Shows and two American Impressionist Society National Shows. Her work was recently selected for inclusion in the Degas Pastel Society International Show and the National Oil and Acrylic Painters’ International Show, “Best of America.” One of her pieces has been acquired for the permanent collection of the Mississippi Governor’s Mansion, and several have been featured on HGTV’s Home Town. Additional accolades include honors from the Vicksburg Art Association, The Cedars Juried Show, Mississippi Watercolor Grand National Show, Art on the Rez, and Woman Painters of the Southeast
Susan is an active member of several professional organizations, including Oil Painters of America, National Oil and Acrylic Painters, American Impressionist Society, Mississippi Oil Painters Association, Mississippi Plein Air Artists, and the Pastel Society of Mississippi. She holds signature membership in both the Mississippi Watercolor Society and the Degas Pastel Society.
Her work is represented by the Caron Gallery in Tupelo and Laurel, the Jackson Street Gallery in Ridgeland, and Pacesetter Gallery in Flowood and online at pacesettergallery.com
When not painting, Susan enjoys reading, gardening, traveling, and spending cherished time with her husband, children, and grandchildren.
Vicki Lueb
Hometown: Diamondhead, MS
Where the Water Flows
Mississippi is blessed with an abundance of waterways—languid, meandering creeks and bayous, glassy lakes reflecting the sky and trees like a mirror, gulf coast estuaries and bays, the mighty Mississippi, and a multitude of other rivers on never-ending journeys to the sea. It is these waterways that capture my imagination. My painting, Where the Water Flows, is meant to capture the stillness of the water’s surface as it mirrors its surroundings beneath a setting sun—a place where time seems to slow down.
Artist Bio
Vicki Lueb is an artist residing on the Mississippi Gulf Coast. She is a member of the Pastel Society of Mississippi and has been awarded signature status with two prestigious national organizations—the Pastel Society of America and the Degas Pastel Society. Her work has garnered numerous awards, numbering in the double digits. She loves sharing her knowledge and has taught workshops for the Pastel Society of Mississippi, Hancock County Arts, and the Ocean Springs Art Association. She is best known for her tranquil paintings of the bayous and marshes of the Mississippi Gulf Coast Region.
Rosanne Mckenney
Hometown: Biloxi, MS
A Day At the Beach
This piece is inspired by the beautiful white-sand beaches along the Gulf Coast of Mississippi and the people who relax and play on them. The artist conveys the laid-back attitudes of those who can enjoy these beaches so easily. These strangers, community, and friends are relishing carefree moments when life stands still, and they delight in what makes life rich.
Artist Bio
Born in the US and raised in Italy by American parents, Rosanne Mckenney learned to appreciate classical art that permeated the Southern Italian culture. It was easy to take for granted the beautiful garden sculptures, enormous narrative paintings, and over-the-top Roman and Renaissance architecture when it was all one knew. When she left her childhood home to study in the U.S., she took with her the expectation that she should be surrounded by beautiful art. Compelled by this need, she studied art informally whenever she could. She has benefited greatly from being mentored by her favorite artists over the years and from studying the masters who forged a path for future artists. Rosanne moved to Mississippi when she married, 35 years ago. It was easy to grow to love Mississippi. Rosanne believes traveling helps one appreciate what one has, understand what is different in a place or culture, and recognize what is common to everyone. She hopes that, through her work, one might see the beauty of life’s simple moments common to all people.
Rosanne is represented by three galleries in Mississippi and one gallery on Roatan, Honduras. Rosanne lives between the Gulf Coast of Mississippi and Honduras, where she volunteers with The Cornerstone Foundation (based in Biloxi, MS) and paints or teaches painting at every opportunity.
