This month’s Spotlight is on Pat Hamilton, a native of Walterboro, who’s family operates Hamilton’s Furniture. Hamilton is also a licensed auctioneer.
Hamilton met Bob Grenko in 1984 at the furniture store, and Grenko was working for a newspaper. After being a newspaper writer for the Navy he came to work for The Shopper, a popular paper with classified ads. Pat’s father initially advised against advertising in the newspaper, but Pat decided to try it, leading to successful sales promotion of washing machines.
Grenko attended the Chicago Art Institute to start his art career. After three years in Chicago, he went to Paris, to continue his art education. A large amount of his European art has been bought by auction houses in London. After studying in Paris, Grenko still wanted to continue his education. He studied Cubanism with an artist named Hans Hoffman. This abstract art inspired him to move to Mexico. In Mexico he would photograph art and try to duplicate it.
Bob Grenko became a close friend of Pat’s, often visiting the furniture company helping him with advertising and led to a lifelong collaboration. Grenko opened the Bob Grenko Art Gallery in 2010 and hired Hamilton to manage it, they raised $10,000 in a week. Grenko’s interest in rice culture sparked his interest in producing detailed drawings of South Carolina’s architecture, particularly rice gates and structures that were highly valued. This led him to take pictures and draw gates at Nemours Plantation. Bob formed a bond with Eugene Dupont, the owner of Nemours, who allowed him to document his rice gates on the plantation. Bob’s drawings and photographs were used to rebuild a diamond gate at Nemours. Bob published a book on rice gates, which was well-received by the wetland’s community.
Bob’s art, particularly his pen and ink drawings, gained recognition and were sold at auctions, with some pieces still being held by collectors. Pat continued to promote Bob’s art, even after his death, by organizing exhibits and auctions. His dedication to Bob’s legacy was driven by a desire to honor his friend and mentor.
Pat emphasized the importance of making Bob’s work accessible to the public and raising awareness of his contributions, promoting Bob’s art was driven by a desire to honor his legacy and ensure it continued to inspire others.
After Grenko’s stroke in 2012, Hamilton managed his art business, including a significant donation to the Colleton County Historical Society. Hamilton aims to promote Grenko’s legacy through exhibits and auctions. Pat’s goal was to ensure that Bob’s art was not just appreciated but also used to support historical and cultural initiatives.
Pat announced an upcoming event in collaboration with the Colleton County Historical Society to showcase Bob’s art. Hamilton delivered a presentation on March 6 to the Colleton County Historical Society to introduce society members to Bob Grenko’s life and artwork.
Hamilton has organized and will host the Bob Granko art show at the Beadon Lucas House on May 21 from 11:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m., the show will include roughly 100 works of art (primarily Colleton County subjects plus some from other counties) for sale. Tables will be set up for originals and low-cost prints. Hamilton is coordinating with the Colleton County Historical Society so that 50% of sales proceeds will be donated to the organization. Hamilton says, “We are going to be selling mostly originals. We will also have prints at a nominal fee, where everybody can at least afford to get a print. I’m going to try to put about 100 pieces of art for sale, which is just a small amount of his work. Maybe annually, we can do something every year, to where the county can realize the sacrifices that Bob made through his drawings to leave something for history.”
