Faces, Foundations & Folklore
Shelby County Arts Council | Columbiana, Alabama | 2025
Faces, Foundations & Folklore was a solo exhibition by Alabama artist Banks Compton presented in the EBSCO Fine Art Gallery at Shelby County Arts Council in Columbiana, Alabama.
The exhibition brought together portraiture, narrative painting, and documentation of Banks' public murals to explore personal memory, community identity, Alabama history, and the stories that shape a sense of place.
Much of the exhibition centered on Banks' hometown of Demopolis and Marengo County, connecting intimate portraits of people from his upbringing with larger works inspired by the history, industries, landscapes, and folklore of West Alabama.
A Solo Exhibition by Banks Compton
Exhibition at a Glance
Exhibition: Faces, Foundations & Folklore
Venue: EBSCO Fine Art Gallery, Shelby County Arts Council
Location: Columbiana, Alabama
Dates: July 21 – September 25, 2025
Exhibition Type: Solo Exhibition
Medium: Painting, Portraiture & Mural Photography
Themes: Alabama, Memory, Community, History & Folklore
Painting the People & Stories of Home
At the heart of Faces, Foundations & Folklore was the idea that artwork can preserve the stories of both people and places.
Small, intimate portraits focused on individuals who influenced Banks' upbringing, while larger narrative paintings explored the history and identity of Demopolis. Among the central imagery was Napoleon's horse, used as a symbol connected to the unusual history surrounding the founding of Demopolis and the industries that shaped the region.
Together, the works moved between personal memory and shared history—examining how individual lives, local stories, landscapes, labor, and folklore collectively form the identity of a community.
From Canvas to Community Murals
The exhibition also incorporated photographs of Banks' murals throughout Alabama, including early work in Marengo County.
Placing the mural documentation alongside the paintings connected Banks' studio and public-art practices. Whether working on a small portrait, a large canvas, or the side of a building, storytelling and preserving a sense of place remain central to the work. The Shelby County Arts Council described the exhibition as a kind of visual archive of Alabama landscapes, people, labor, and legacy.
Installation Views
Selected Works
Gulf Shores
Balance
Mother Laughing
Marengo 1/3
Marengo 2/3
Marengo 3/3
About Banks Compton
Banks Compton is an Alabama muralist and fine artist whose work explores storytelling, nature, local culture, and a sense of place.
A graduate of the Rhode Island School of Design, Banks works across painting, murals, and public art, frequently drawing inspiration from the people, landscapes, history, and communities of Alabama.
Read about Faces, Foundations & Folklore at the Shelby County Arts Council →