Originally using legos to bring his imagination to life, Hamlett Dobbins 
transitioned to paint as a means for creative expression. Dobbins’s newest exhibition, The Wellspring, at the University of Mississippi Museum is a collection of paintings that draw specifically from a diverse set of experiences with his two children, Milla (aka M.R.M.) and Ives (aka I.V.). The paintings span a number of years and reflect different stages of their rich relationships.
“The University Museum is exceptionally pleased to present these remarkable paintings by a very talented artist whose career has taken him this year to a Rome Prize Fellowship.
We are thrilled to anticipate Hamlett’s return from Italy in December, to discuss these works with our audiences,” said Museum Director Robert Saarnio.
In conjunction with the exhibition, there was an Opening Reception on Thursday, November 14, 2013.
An artist’s lecture will be held on Wednesday, December 18, 2013, from noon to 1:00 PM. These events are free and open to the public.
A native of Tennessee, Hamlett Dobbins has spent most of his life in Memphis. He received his BFA from the University of Memphis in 1993 and went on to receive his MA and MFA from the University of Iowa. After completing his graduate studies, Dobbins moved to Memphis where he worked as a curator for Delta Axis @ Marshall Arts while teaching at the University of Memphis, University of Mississippi, and at Memphis College of Art. In 2000, he received a fellowship for a residency at the Vermont Studio Center in Johnson, Vermont, as well as a three-month residency at the Bemis Center for Contemporary Art in Omaha, Nebraska. Since 2001, Dobbins has worked at Rhodes College as an instructor and as the director for the Clough-Hanson Gallery where he has curated shows with Thomas Nozkowski, Roe Ethridge, Jon Haddock, Radcliffe Bailey, and Nikki S. Lee. This year Dobbins is a fellow at the American Academy in Rome.