Meet The Artists

Julie McAllister is a Charleston-based custom cake illusionist and artist who artistically transforms the centerpiece of any celebration—cake—into an astonishing life-like representation, elevating the traditional dessert into an awe-inspiring work of art. With a focus on subjects iconic to the South, she works to ensure that her designs exceed expectations, then uses her meticulous eye for detail and artful hand to create extravagant designs that deceive and delight the eye. McAllister’s work has captured the attention of celebrities and nationally known Southern brands. Her clients include Reese Witherspoon’s Draper James, Garden & Gun, and King Bean Coffee. McAllister has also created multiple in-depth, ultra-realistic cake sculpting tutorials for American Cake Decorating Magazine. Her work has been featured in HGTV Magazine, Entertain & Celebrate, Southern Lady, and SKIRT. You can watch her flex her cake skills on the Food Network and Discovery+, and she was also honored as one of the Create TV Cooking Challenge winners.

An artist, chef, musician, and builder, Kurtis Schumm is a true Renaissance man, a jack of many self-taught trades, and a master of all. After a successful career in the music industry playing with bands such as Gov’t Mule and Emmylou Harris, Kurtis transitioned into a culinary career as an executive chef. With his wife as his muse, he has been inspired to turn artwork into his career. With a creative energy and willingness to try new things, Kurtis has pioneered a unique and groundbreaking art style using acrylic, ink, and paints.

Chris Groves has been immersed in art since he was a young boy. Due to Groves’s interest in spending time outside as a child, his parents gave him a nature drawing book when he was 10. He latched on to the book with a sense of awe and inspiration, spending countless hours copying and enhancing the drawings. His parents hired a private tutor to instruct him in basic techniques. In high school, Groves met sculptor Glenna Goodacre, who helped nurture his dream of becoming an artist. He has studied at the Florence Academy of Art in Italy, the Colorado Academy of Art, the Loveland Art Academy, the Cottonwood Art Academy, and the Denver Arts Students League. He also enjoyed a private, two-year mentorship with artist Jay Moore, which he considers a turning point in his artistic career. Groves’s paintings hang in numerous private and corporate collections, and he is the recipient of multiple awards and recognitions

Katie White’s art is heavily inspired by nature. Drawn to the horizon line, Katie brings focus to the space where land or water meets the sky, a quiet pause at the end of the day as the sun sets, a deep exhale, or a place to root yourself to the earth. Many of her pieces are of soft, serene atmospheres that evoke a peaceful emotion, while others pull you in with bold colors, telling their own story. She infuses meditative practices with her watercolor process, teaching others how to use the medium as a tool to ease anxiety. A long-time friend of Palmetto Bluff, Katie is excited to come back and visit with the many friends she has made over the years.

Michael Smalls is a 7th-generation basket-sewer from Mt. Pleasant, SC. He learned the craft from his grandmother, Lucinda Pringle – whose mother was an enslaved worker on Laurel Hill Plantation. Dino Badger, former apprentice and now partner of Michael, has roots that can be traced back to Round O, SC. The pair often pray for the well-being of the basket’s future owner as they sew.

Jery Taylor began learning the art of sweetgrass sewing from her grandmother at the age of five on the Boone Hall Plantation grounds in Mt. Pleasant, SC. As she continued to learn and grow, so did her dedication to the Gullah-Geechee culture and arts. Her work has been featured on HGTV and the Discovery Channel and included in the permanent collection of the Smithsonian and private collections. 

Anna Vaughn Creech Kincheloe is an expressionist southern artist based in Raleigh, NC. Her work reflects free-spirited moments, often with a transportive quality and connections between elements that encourage the viewer to wander. She is drawn to expansive, wide-open spaces — particularly horizon lines — and attempts to evoke this sense of freedom in her vivid paintings. Expression, color, and movement are also important aspects of her work. When not in her studio, you can likely find Anna by the sea or out in nature with her husband, Hatcher, and children, Lucy and Byrd.

Clay Ross is a multi-Grammy-winning artist and the founder of the Billboard chart-topping band Ranky Tanky. A native of South Carolina, Ross moved to New York City in 2002 and has since collaborated with artists as diverse as Gregory Porter, Snarky Puppy, and Bobby McFerrin. Through multiple collaborations with the U.S. State Department, he has toured worldwide as a Cultural Ambassador. As a teaching artist, through renowned cultural institutions, including Carnegie Hall and Lincoln Center, Ross has facilitated various musical experiences, ranging from stand-alone concerts to intensive year-long creative workshops designed to have a powerful impact on participants’ daily lives.

Blanc Creatives was founded in Charlottesville, Virginia, by owner Corry Blanc. Fusing strong culinary roots and curious artistic backgrounds, Corry and the Blanc Creatives team strive to create quality, hand-crafted kitchenware and barware for gastronomy enthusiasts that accentuate the human experience through nourishment and connection in and out of the kitchen. This passion drew their team together, comprising twelve artists, chefs, and designers. Blanc Creatives exists to enrich the lives of others by forging intentional community connections and responsibly crafting products that transcend time. Durable, beautiful, and guaranteed for life – that’s the Blanc Creatives way.

Originally from Lancaster County, PA, Karin Olah is a Charleston, SC-based artist inspired by the colors and light of coastal landscapes. She combines hand-dyed fabric and paint to create her signature multi-layered paintings. Karin’s subject matter ranges from seascape to abstract expressionism to a dreamy place in between. Her work has been on the cover of Charleston Magazine and featured in House & Garden Magazine, Southern Living Magazine, Better Homes & Gardens, Elements of Style Blog, American Contemporary Art Magazine, Charleston Style & Design, and Coastal Isles Magazine. Her art is in public collections at the Medical University of South Carolina, Baptist MD Anderson Cancer Center, Mayo Clinic Florida, The Ritz-Carlton, JW Marriott, and Ilya Corporation in Japan.