Dunedin art exhibition sees local artists draw inspiration from children's stories and fairytails

Dunedin Fine Art Center: Once Upon a Time

A new exhibition at the?Dunedin Fine Art Center, ?Once Upon A Time," saw artists use classic stories and childhood fairy tales as inspiration for their?art.

DUNEDIN, Fla. - A new exhibition at the Dunedin Fine Art Center named "Once Upon A Time," asked artists to use classic stories and childhood fairytales as inspiration for their art.

"Every piece that I got to hang, I felt like I was meeting an old friend," Dunedin Fine Art Center Curatorial Director Catherine Bergmann said.

Artwork of Winnie the Pooh.

Bergmann explained that the prompt calling artists to the exhibition was for artwork that captures a character or a landscape from a favorite fairytale or myth.

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The local art community responded with over 100 submissions.

Meet the artists

What they're saying:

Artist Glen Carlin painted a portrait inspired by the 1963 film "Jason and the Argonauts."

"I was a 12-year-old kid when I saw the movie. It was a fantasy," Carlin said. "I loved mythology. I loved Greek mythology, and it was a fantastic story."

Carlin describing his artwork which was inspired by inspired by the 1963 film

Carlin describes his artwork, which was inspired by the 1963 film "Jason and the Argonauts."

Artist Holly Bird wanted to capture the essence of classic children’s illustrations. Her piece, "Gerda’s Ride," is inspired by "The Snow Queen."

Familiar characters and stories are scattered throughout the exhibit, from Winnie the Pooh to Beauty and the Beast to many Little Red Riding Hoods.

Artwork of many Little Red Riding Hood displayed at the Dunedin Fine Art Center's

Artwork of many Little Red Riding Hood is displayed at the Dunedin Fine Art Center's "Once Upon A Time" exhibition.

Artist De Meer painted "The Wolf Insisted He Was Misunderstood."

"It was a couple of months ago. I had this idea. I thought it would be really interesting if the whole thing was really spun from the other side," Meer said. "I thought that would be cool to do, and that's something I got to work on. I'll put it aside. I'll get to it later, and then this call for an artist comes."

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Meer’s painting was awarded "Best in Show." For the longtime painter, this is one of the first times he’s shared his work publicly.

"I’m very grateful that, surrounded by so many great artists and talent, they felt they saw something in this," Meer said. "I’m humbled."

Meer's "The Wolf Insisted He Was Misunderstood" artwork won the "Best in Show" award at Dunedin's Fine Art Center "Once Upon A Time" exhibition.

Both artists and staff say the accessibility of the subject led to the high number of submissions.

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Artwork at the Dunedin Fine Art Center's "Once Upon A Time" Exhibition."

"Most of us read fairytales. A lot of us have favorite ones. A lot of people grew up on Disney," Bird said. "Fairy tales are hugely important to our culture."

See the exhibition :

"Once Upon A Time" will be on display until Feb. 23.

For more information on the display, click here.

The Source: FOX 13 Photojournalist Barry Wong collected the information for this story.

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