Christmas Card Lane showcases artists’ talent

MADISON – Christmas Card Lane in downtown Madison offers a charming visual exhibit of memories, traditions and comical twists of the Yuletide season in the form of larger-than-life wooden ‘cards.’

Madison Arts Council (MAC) sponsors the display and invites visitors to drive along Church and Front streets for the display, lighted until 9 p.m. through December.

Among new entrants for 2016, “Christmas Train” by Jacob Ladd shows a choo-choo train plowing through the snow toward the North Pole with Santa at the engine.

Gerald Clark’s 2016 design, “Frosty Snowmen,” depicts two snowmen in the Christmas spirit as they play in the snow on a hillside topped with a Christmas tree. Clark remembers Christmas Card Lane on Holmes Avenue in Huntsville and is glad that MAC is continuing the tradition.

Cailyn Guthrie, a senior at James Clemens High School, created a vintage look of two praying children with “Christmas Blessings.” “Groovy Christmas,” a group project by Spirited Art Design, was the brainchild of Amanda Mullins; the artists were Liz Boley, Keith Eaton, Amina Hasan, Sandra Kuhn and Jon Eaton.

“Joyeux Noel” adds a French flair to Christmas salutations. Scott Brown, a member of Rotary Club of Madison, painted this entry.

With “Leg Lamp Christmas,” Teresa Batchelor depicts Santa’s ‘man cave’ with his fur-trimmed suit flung on his easy chair and his bag of toys resting nearby. Batchelor’s leg lamp pays homage to the famous scene from “A Christmas Story” movie.

Anatoly Bondarenko, a Calhoun Community College student, created a detailed painting of a quiet, mountainside town, “Winter Wonderland.” Stephanie Thompson created a card for “Mulan,” the upcoming production by Columbia Elementary School Drama Club.

For “The First Noel,” Beth Paul combined ornate calligraphy and pictorial representation for the Nativity. Stephanie Thompson’s “Let It Snow” shows a friendly snowman, wrapped in a red scarf.

Nadiya Smyrnova, the 2015 winner for Christmas Card Lane, painted a rural scene with drifts of snow by a country church.

Numerous artists are reprising their 2014 and 2015 cards for enjoyment at Christmas Card Lane this year.

To vote for your favorite card, visit arsmadison.org, click the “Vote for your favorite” box and click the graphic image of the card. (artsmadison.org/christmas-card-lane-vote).