If you haven’t see Betsy Wilson-Mahoney’s art, you haven’t been to Aiken. Her diverse works are everywhere in her hometown — large original paintings of iconic Aiken scenes like the live oaks on South Boundary, the Farmer’s Market, and early morning at the Training Track grace CC & B Bank, George Funeral Home, and many local churches. Her work is even seen outside, as evidenced by one of her most recent projects, an array of murals adorning the small alley.
Starting a Career in ‘The Alley’
With the exception of her college years in Columbia, Betsy has lived in Aiken her entire life. Using her education in fiber arts, she opened, at age 22, one of the first shops in the alley; there she made custom shawls, blankets, and rugs, and taught some weaving and spinning classes. She loved her shop, but a year later she was offered a big career step as a textile designer for Regal Textile in Johnston, South Carolina, and she felt she could not give up the opportunity. Betsy was very successful in her field for seven years and had become the lead designer. Yet she did not hesitate to put it all aside when she had small children.
“I began painting furniture in the late 80s and early 90s when my kids were really little,” Betsy says. “It was a real trendy thing, which bled over to doing murals by the time my kids were in early school years,” she explains. “I painted decorative projects in people’s homes, things like baby room and kitchen murals. I found I could do them and still be home by the time they got out of school.”
The murals became more involved as Betsy’s children were growing up and she had more time. She even did some big projects out of state. “When I was 40 I had a cathartic moment in my life,” she recalls. “I realized one thing was missing: I was not doing fine art and I felt like it was time.” She tuned up her skills, took some classes with her favorite former professor from USC Columbia, and got a show through the Aiken Center for the Arts. In 2001, Art by Betsy was born.
Aiken Art for Everybody
Aiken has always provided Betsy with lots of subject matter. And some, like South Boundary’s live oaks, she has painted over and over in various seasons and angles. She only allows a very limited run of prints of each original, usually 100, so although thousands of people have a print of the South Boundary live oaks, they are not all the same. “I paint our lives here in Aiken,” Betsy says, adding, “I love that my art is affordable to all kinds of people. Most of my prints run from just $15 to $120. I believe that the art you buy should be a conversation starter, not just something you put on the wall. I like to think of it as tattoos for your house.” In addition to her art that hangs on walls, Betsy has created numerous seasonal calendars of Aiken images, notecards, and two books, The Aiken Book, a Watercolor Tour and When I Think of Aiken. Various gift items that feature her most popular paintings, like refrigerator magnets and Christmas tree ornaments, can be found at Menagerie.
For years, Betsy did most of her painting at a studio on Hayne Avenue. “People thought moving my studio from where it had been for 16 years to the Aiken Antique Mall was strange,” she chuckles, “But it was a great thing! I like to be around people and now, with a second studio at Menagerie, it gives me different places to show up and different people to meet.” Painting watercolors requires a big, flat table, which she has at the Aiken Antique Mall. When working on an easel, she usually paints at Menagerie or out on the street. A great assortment of her art is available at both studios as well as the Aiken Visitors Center.
Projects Take Planning
While Betsy clearly enjoys her art, it isn’t something that she takes lightly. It is her job and she treats it as such. “You have to take yourself seriously or no one else will,” she says emphatically. Betsy does a considerable number of commissions year-round, and while some far away customers find her on Facebook, the majority of her commissions are for local residents who are familiar with her work. For portraits of people and pets, she works from photos. “I want them to give me the one photo they are in love with, not three photos. Mostly I am very dedicated to realism,” she emphasizes.
“I like to have a big project each year,” Betsy says. In 2018 it was the murals in the alley that she painted for the city. Her 2019 project, one painting per month, culminated in the stunning 2020 Bruce’s Field calendar. The calendar, now available and selling quickly, features scenes from Aiken’s premier equestrian venue. “It’s different from my other calendars because it is all equestrian art, but it is still very obviously Aiken,” she says noting, “All the profits from its sales are going to the Aiken Horse Park (aka Bruce’s Field) Foundation to support their charity events.”
For most people, that would be more than enough work to keep her busy, but not Betsy. “Then I always have ‘my own’ project,” she says with a chuckle. This year’s project, which she dubbed, At Home in Aiken, is an art map. “The streets are laid out to scale in a correct way, the buildings, obviously, are not to scale and are placed as best as possible,” she describes. Betsy can customize the map by painting in the customer’s house from a photograph. Or, she can do something else special, like adding wedding bells on the map with the name and address of the service so guests can actually use it as a map and then have a keepsake as well.
Saving Time for Other Interests
It’s hard to believe that there is even an hour of spare time left in her week, but somehow Betsy has managed, for over 40 years, to have a big presence in community and musical theater. She has performed with Aiken Community Theatre, USC Players, Edgefield Theater, and Aiken Women’s Heart Board fundraiser; she has sung with The Heart Throbs and St. John’s United Methodist Choir.
Looking to the future, Betsy shares, “My husband is going to retire in the spring; I’m not.” But the two do plan to enjoy more time traveling. “When we were raising a family, we couldn’t travel a lot, so now is the time,” she says with a smile. Just as with her art, Betsy is already planning a big project. “I want to do the Great American Vacation. Go across the country in a camper with my husband and two small dogs!”
To get in touch with Betsy, find her on Facebook at Facebook.com/TheStudioWhereAreHappens, call 803.270.1213, or stop by Menagerie at 108 Laurens Street or the Aiken Antique Mall at 112 Laurens Street, where you might “find her by luck,” as the sign says.
Who is Betsy Wilson-Mahoney?
First job
Fiber Arts shop in The Alley.
Worst job
I’ve never had one.
Favorite job
Being a mom.
When did you know you wanted to be an artist?
As a young child.
Favorite medium
I like working in watercolor and acrylic equally.
Favorite subject matter
I like that I paint a variety of subjects from cityscapes to dogs and kids.
Advice for tapping into creativity?
Leave yourself some blank space. I like to do something rhythmic like walking or swimming.
Do you teach?
No. I would be a terrible teacher.
What do you do for fun?
Community theater.
What do you do to relax?
Cook; with no recipes, totally doing my own thing.
Advice for an artist
Take yourself seriously.
Favorite show tune?
Depends on the show I’m in at the time.
Favorite quote?
The greatest thing I’ve created is the children that I raised.
If not Aiken, where would you live?
Asheville, North Carolina.
What makes you smile?
A 75% off sale.
What is your greatest extravagance?
Travel.
One word to describe you
Dedicated.
A future goal?
Feel good mentally, physically and spiritually for the final one-third of my life.
See Betsy’s Work in Aiken
