Judy Nail, Folk Artist
When I first visited the Smoky Mountains in 1968, I fell
in love with the beautiful, clear water of the rivers and
creeks! (In NewOrleans, where I was born, the water
is very brackish!) The creeks and riverbeds of the
Smokies were covered with all these wonderful
rocks, oval in a myriad amount of shapes. I
immediately 'saw' thousands of owls! I brought a
boxful home with me and commenced making OWL
ART. I moved to the Smokies in 1977 and had all the
materials at hand to create hundreds.....and I did! I
sold over 500 of them to the gift shops in Cherokee,
North Carolina. Over the years since then I have
made some but never the quantity as in Cherokee
because it took away from the pleasure. I like to
create the faces with individual expressions which
make them unique. Each plaque or creation could
have a remark or question placed with it. I have kept
many for myself because they said,"please don't sell
me or give me away"
in love with the beautiful, clear water of the rivers and
creeks! (In NewOrleans, where I was born, the water
is very brackish!) The creeks and riverbeds of the
Smokies were covered with all these wonderful
rocks, oval in a myriad amount of shapes. I
immediately 'saw' thousands of owls! I brought a
boxful home with me and commenced making OWL
ART. I moved to the Smokies in 1977 and had all the
materials at hand to create hundreds.....and I did! I
sold over 500 of them to the gift shops in Cherokee,
North Carolina. Over the years since then I have
made some but never the quantity as in Cherokee
because it took away from the pleasure. I like to
create the faces with individual expressions which
make them unique. Each plaque or creation could
have a remark or question placed with it. I have kept
many for myself because they said,"please don't sell
me or give me away"
