Bio

Biography/Mark Flowers

Mark E. Flowers earned his BFA in Studio Arts from The University of South Carolina in 1977 and his MFA in Painting from Western Michigan University in1979. Following his academic career, he has exhibited his work throughout the United States and in Europe, and in the summer of 2010, exhibited his seventh one-person show with Hodges/Taylor Gallery in Charlotte, North Carolina. His relationship with that gallery now spans more then 29 years. Mark's work can be found in 26 public and over 300 private collections. Throughout his career he has won numerous awards for his art in both regional and national competitions. Most recently he was named one of the 100 Art Alumni for the Centennial Celebration at Western Michigan University.

His art teaching career parallels his art making. He has taught art at the

Secondary and college levels for more than 36 years. While he has been a teacher of art, he has also chaired two fine arts departments and one painting department.

While pursuing dual careers, he has served as a town councilman, volunteer firefighter, Little League baseball coach and president of a community recreational board. Along with his artist/wife, Kristy Higby, they have raised two sons, Carson and Morgan, who are now off learning to live creative lives. Examples of Mark and Kristy’s work can be found on their website at www.mountainteastudios.com or on their Facebook page, Mountain Tea Studios.

Mark is a career artist who lives his life creating art, teaching what he knows, and serving his community well. He maintains a strong exhibition record and is now more committed to making art than ever before. In 2004, he and Kristy purchased a hand-made log cabin just north of Asheville, NC in the community of Alexander. They have spent the last several years renovating the cabin and just recently built a large studio on the property. In the summer of 2014, they relocated permanently to the property they affectionately call “Mountain Tea”.

He currently is an adjunct teacher and a gallery coordinator at USC Upstate in Spartanburg, SC, as well as a maker of paintings.