Myrtie Johnson Cushman is an Aiken county native, and grew up in the Graniteville area. Upon graduation from Leavelle McCampbell High School, she attended Tennessee Temple College in Chattanooga for one year. She married, and due to her husband's work, they lived in Niagara Falls , New York; Blakely Georgia; and Henderson, Nevada before returning to Aiken County in 1963.
After returning to the Aiken area, Myrtie worked for many years for the United States Postal Service in Warrenville, South Carolina, serving as postmaster until her retirement in 1992. She began taking private oil painting lessons from Iris Scoggins, in North Augusta, South Carolina about four years prior to her retirement. In 1994, she entered the University of South Carolina at Aiken to study art under Albin Beyer and Elizabeth Cargile. Myrtie is primarily a landscape painter. She loves to paint the world around her, the places she knows best ( Aiken County scenes and coastal South Carolina, especially Hunting Island ). Much of the beauty of Aiken County lies in the ponds and streams and she tries to capture that beauty in each painting. She has spent many happy times in the natural environment of Hunting Island with her family. Over the years, she has seen the island change, as the sea through erosion reclaims part of it. She attempts to capture scenes that may soon be changed forever. Through her paintings, she strives to evoke the feelings of peacefulness and serenity.
She exhibits in local and statewide shows, and has won numerous awards. Her continuous success in the Anderson County Arts Center juried art show led to her first show as a featured artist. The invitation included her with four artists in the exhibition "Five Women Artists Naturally Inspired". Her art is in corporate and individual collections throughout several states. She is an active member of the Aiken Artist Guild. She is a member of the Aiken Center for the Arts, the South Carolina Watermedia Society, and the Gertrude Herbert Institute of Art. Her life in "retirement" is full with her family, her church and her activities surrounding her love of art. She is represented by Connie's Framing in Aiken.
Myrtie Cushman
172 Augusta Rd.
Warrenville, SC 29851
(803) 663-3109
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