Artist Brings Beauty to Rest Stop
By: Kathy Witt
The desire to make things beautiful seems to be part of every artist’s DNA. That impulse brought one Georgetown artist to the I-75 Scott County Rest Area – Southbound, located at Mile Marker 127, to work her particular brand of magic.
For more than 10 years, Annie Brady, the artist behind Georgetown’s Anniemals Art Studio, has volunteered her time to keep this Rest Area a place of beauty for those stopping by as they travel through Kentucky. (See related story, “Anniemals art studio has the liveliest window displays in town.”)
When she set her sights on the Rest Area, one of the first things Annie immediately noticed was that the artwork did not reflect the artists of the Scott County/Georgetown community.
“All of the artwork was from another destination and had no ties to Georgetown,” she said. “Also, the art hadn’t been changed for decades.”
Annie set to work, identifying where the art had come from and then packing it up and sending it on its way. Next, she sent out a call to Georgetown artists to bring and show their work in this unique setting.
“Georgetown artists are great,” she said. “I’m always proud to be with them and I like doing stuff with art.”
Today, all of the art – including some works by Annie herself – is tied to Scott County artists.
“We don’t sell the art here,” said Annie. “The art is on display, in beautiful cases, for visitors to enjoy. A registry at the Rest Area lets visitors look up the individual artists if they’d like to know more about them and their work.”
As a volunteer, Annie’s role is to keep the Rest Area spruced up, the artwork dusted and the pieces rotated out as works by new artists come in. COVID has altered the schedule somewhat, limiting the frequency with which the art is turned over.
“Once things loosen up, I’ll return more regularly, as I did prior to COVID, to change out the art.”
The artist plans to continue volunteering at the Rest Area as long as the need is there.
“It’s all very beautiful work,” said Annie. “Having it here gives artists a chance to show their work and the people who come in are amazed at the art they see in the Rest Area.”
Author: Kathryn Witt
Kathryn Witt is an award-winning travel and lifestyle writer, syndicated columnist and author of several books, including Secret Cincinnati, The Secret of the Belles and Atlanta Georgia: A Photographic Portrait. A member of SATW, Authors Guild and the Society of Children’s Books & Illustrators, she lives in northern Kentucky.
