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MECC to Host Exhibit Featuring Art & Photography by Ron Flanary

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MECC to Host Exhibit Featuring Art & Photography by Ron Flanary

Mountain Empire Community College’s Wampler Library will host a reception highlighting the Slemp Gallery’s latest exhibit “The Tracks of My Years" featuring the work of Big Stone Gap artist and railroad enthusiast Ron Flanary.

The reception will be held on Friday, January 17 from 2 to 3:30 p.m. in the Wampler Library located in Robb Hall. Flanary will provide an introduction and discussion of his work, which includes his photography and watercolor collections on display in the Slemp Gallery. An accompanying exhibit in the Wampler Library of railroad memorabilia will be offered by the Southwest Virginia Museum Historical State Park. Refreshments will be provided.

Born in Benham, Ky. in 1948, Flanary’s family moved to Virginia by 1950, and to Appalachia, Va. in 1952. He is a self-taught artist and photographer, drawing trains at age three and taking his first photograph (of a train) in 1955. Flanary graduated from Appalachia High School in 1966 and UVA-WISE (then Clinch Valley College) as a member of the first four-year class in 1970. He received the Outstanding Alumnus award from the school in 2001.

Following college, Flanary was first employed by Southern Railway as an engineering department management trainee, but after being drafted into the US Army in 1970, he decided to pursue a different career path after returning to civilian life. He retired in 2008 after 38 years of public service, 33 of which were with the LENOWISCO Planning District Commission in Duffield. He was the agency’s executive director for 17 years. LENOWISCO’s work in expanding manufacturing and service facilities creating thousands of jobs, extension of public water and sewer, and high-speed fiber broadband throughout Lee, Wise, Scott Counties and the City of Norton during this tenure there was extraordinary. During that time, he was honored at many levels for those accomplishments.

Flanary was a semi-professional musician in the 60s and 70s as well and was (and still is) a participant in the local arts scene—singing tenor with the community chorus and acting on stage in many local productions. He is an accomplished jazz trumpeter.

Photography and art have been a byproduct of Flanary’s lifelong fascination with railroading. Since his first train photo was published in a national magazine in 1968, he’s authored (or co-authored) ten books for six different publishers and had over 300 feature articles in several nationally circulated railroad periodicals. His commissioned painting clients include private individuals and corporate clients like the L&N Railroad Company, Cone Mills, the Kingsport Chamber, CSX and Norfolk Southern. His photos and art have also appeared in many books and articles by other authors.

Flanary’s wife since 1971, Wilma, is an MECC alum, and they live in Big Stone Gap. Wilma was born in Appalachia, and, like Ron, grew up there. These days, Flanary stays busy editing a quarterly magazine for the L&N Railroad Historical Society, and occasionally does freelance writing for other magazines. Among the many accolades for both his vocational and avocational achievements, he was the recipient of the prestigious Stindt Photographic Award last year from the Railway & Locomotive Historical Society. R&LHS’s selection emphasized Flanary’s lifetime body of photographic work on railroad subjects all over the country, but particularly in his beloved home, the Appalachian region.

MECC’s Wampler Library and Slemp Gallery feature rotating exhibits of artwork throughout the year for student and community viewing. The library is open Monday – Thursday, 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Friday, 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. For more information, contact Library Director Meg Wilson at (276) 523-7468

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Mountain Empire Community College

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PERSON_PROFILE

Mountain Empire Community College’s Wampler Library will host a reception highlighting the Slemp Gallery’s latest exhibit “The Tracks of My Years" featuring the work of Big Stone Gap artist and railroad enthusiast Ron Flanary.

The reception will be held on Friday, January 17 from 2 to 3:30 p.m. in the Wampler Library located in Robb Hall. Flanary will provide an introduction and discussion of his work, which includes his photography and watercolor collections on display in the Slemp Gallery. An accompanying exhibit in the Wampler Library of railroad memorabilia will be offered by the Southwest Virginia Museum Historical State Park. Refreshments will be provided.

Born in Benham, Ky. in 1948, Flanary’s family moved to Virginia by 1950, and to Appalachia, Va. in 1952. He is a self-taught artist and photographer, drawing trains at age three and taking his first photograph (of a train) in 1955. Flanary graduated from Appalachia High School in 1966 and UVA-WISE (then Clinch Valley College) as a member of the first four-year class in 1970. He received the Outstanding Alumnus award from the school in 2001.

Following college, Flanary was first employed by Southern Railway as an engineering department management trainee, but after being drafted into the US Army in 1970, he decided to pursue a different career path after returning to civilian life. He retired in 2008 after 38 years of public service, 33 of which were with the LENOWISCO Planning District Commission in Duffield. He was the agency’s executive director for 17 years. LENOWISCO’s work in expanding manufacturing and service facilities creating thousands of jobs, extension of public water and sewer, and high-speed fiber broadband throughout Lee, Wise, Scott Counties and the City of Norton during this tenure there was extraordinary. During that time, he was honored at many levels for those accomplishments.

Flanary was a semi-professional musician in the 60s and 70s as well and was (and still is) a participant in the local arts scene—singing tenor with the community chorus and acting on stage in many local productions. He is an accomplished jazz trumpeter.

Photography and art have been a byproduct of Flanary’s lifelong fascination with railroading. Since his first train photo was published in a national magazine in 1968, he’s authored (or co-authored) ten books for six different publishers and had over 300 feature articles in several nationally circulated railroad periodicals. His commissioned painting clients include private individuals and corporate clients like the L&N Railroad Company, Cone Mills, the Kingsport Chamber, CSX and Norfolk Southern. His photos and art have also appeared in many books and articles by other authors.

Flanary’s wife since 1971, Wilma, is an MECC alum, and they live in Big Stone Gap. Wilma was born in Appalachia, and, like Ron, grew up there. These days, Flanary stays busy editing a quarterly magazine for the L&N Railroad Historical Society, and occasionally does freelance writing for other magazines. Among the many accolades for both his vocational and avocational achievements, he was the recipient of the prestigious Stindt Photographic Award last year from the Railway & Locomotive Historical Society. R&LHS’s selection emphasized Flanary’s lifetime body of photographic work on railroad subjects all over the country, but particularly in his beloved home, the Appalachian region.

MECC’s Wampler Library and Slemp Gallery feature rotating exhibits of artwork throughout the year for student and community viewing. The library is open Monday – Thursday, 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. and Friday, 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. For more information, contact Library Director Meg Wilson at (276) 523-7468

Mountain Empire Community College

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