Artist Murray Sease paints with passion

It seemed hotter than the surface of the sun on a recent afternoon on Calhoun Street in Bluffton.

Still, clusters of the intrigued stepped through the red and white entrance of La Petite Gallerie.

The pocket-sized gallery space, at the river side of Babbie Guscio’s The Store, was artfully filled with the impressive work of the gallery artists.

La Petite Gallerie is a co-operative gallery, to which seven very gifted Lowcountry artists lend their artwork. The seven including Murray Sease , Margaret Crawford, Peggy Duncan, Lee Grefalda, Barbara Grubba, Don Nagel and Emily Wilson are talented artists.

I had come to take in the gallery to focus on the work of Sease.

She ushered me around the eye-popping gallery walls. Sease directed my gaze to the right rear of the gallery. One of her first paintings, “Radishes,” almost leapt at me from the wall. Filled with vibrant color, it would be impossible to miss the impact of this exquisite piece.

“Blackeyed Susan” was resting in an adjacent gallery space. The piece had just been purchased, and it was stowed safely away from the view of the gallery visitors.

One the artist’s of her most intriguing accomplishments was her portrayal of the clear glass jar providing the base of the setting.

Not quite dry, but ready to be installed on the gallery walls was “A Slice of Summer.” Just a quick glance will at first cool you, and second, cause your mouth to water. She masterfully created the hydrangeas, watermelon and the most memorable sliced peach.

Beginning with her earliest days, Sease says she was always interested in art.

In fact, she’ll tell you painting is her passion.

She’ll point out that she was formally educated in art at Appalachian State College, completed her studies at SCAD and has enjoyed a career as a graphic designer and illustrator. She says that it was only after her move to Bluffton - where she was taken with the incredible natural settings, the rich culture, the history and the many artist friends in the community - that she began focusing on fine art.

“I enjoyed graphic designing and illustrating for all of those years, and still do,” she said. “... I also knew that I wanted to work at becoming a fine artist, sometime.”

Bluffton was such a perfect location she explained. She and her husband built their home , and set out in new career directions.

Sease spends a portion of each day at the easel in her home studio. She also oversees her administrative responsibilities at La Petite Gallerie, and volunteers her creative marketing talent at the SOBA Gallery, just down the street.

Recently, because her work is so broadly observed, she has begun responding to commission requests.

She is currently focused on creating twelve paintings for a bride who plans to give them to the members of her wedding party.

“How lucky I am,” she says. “I am pursuing my artistic passion in the most incredible community I can imagine. (I am) totally surrounded by the most amazing natural settings and friends engaged in a shared artistic focus ... who are all so supportive and encouraging”

This story was originally published July 18, 2016 at 6:39 AM with the headline "Artist Murray Sease paints with passion."