The sounds of the Rev. Raymond Wise and Family Choir filled the room as did the appearance of the phrase “William L. Hawkins born Ky July 27, 1895” at the Riffe Gallery on Thursday evening.The Ohio Arts Council proudly presented the opening night of their exhibit entitled “William Hawkins: Drawings in Context.”The exhibit consists of about 60 drawings and 20 paintings created by Hawkins, a self-taught, black artist who lived during the 19th century. The majority of the pictures are of situations and sites Hawkins would have seen everyday like buildings, animals and people. However, in some instances Hawkins would get inspiration from pictures in books and magazines. In these cases, Hawkins would replicate the original picture in pencil, crayon or colored pencil, and paint his interpretation of it. The artwork of Hawkins is unique in that he used whatever he could get his hands on to express himself artistically. For example, Hawkins used drawing paper, pamphlets, cardboard, envelopes and paper he found to create his abstract interpretation of life. At first glance, the work of Hawkins looks very elementary, but the simplicity of his work is an art form in itself.Pamela Hamilton attained a spot on the Riffe Center mailing list by attending several art exhibits in the past, that’s how she heard of Hawkins’ exhibit. In her opinion, the work of Hawkins is similar to that of Elijah Pierce, a Columbus native. As she sees it, the simplicity in both of their styles is similar.Betty Jenkins, a self-proclaimed art enthusiast, said even the cold temperatures could not have kept her from the opening day of this exhibit. According to Jenkins, she goes on a lot of trips to see art, especially when the art work of black people is displayed. Jenkins also thinks the art work belonging to Hawkins and Elijah Pierce are comparable. However, in her eyes, there is a distinct difference. “Hawkins uses more vibrant colors than Pierce,” Jenkins said. “Simple shapes and bright colors. You can see Hawkins’ paintings from across the room.”The art work of Hawkins is inspirational to Jenkins because of his lack of training. “He was self-trained to become an artist,” Jenkins said. “I’m learning to be one too. He’s an inspiration to me because he learned to paint late in life.”The art work of Jenkins was brought to the attention of The Ohio Arts Council in the early 80s. Hawkins submitted slides of his work to the council’s Individual Artists program. In this program, the work of an artist is reviewed by a panel of other artists in the same field. Based on the merits of their work, the winner is rewarded $5,000 or $10,000 to continue their work and to buy materials. Hawkins received the fellowship grant in 1984, 1986 and 1988.Other pieces belonging to Hawkins have appeared in various art exhibitions held at the Riffe Gallery in the past. However, Hawkins didn’t receive his own exhibit until curator, and director Timothy C. Keny of Keny Galleries made the request.William Hawkins passed away in 1990, but his legacy lives on in his art work. The exhibition will run in the Riffe Gallery until April 2.