From Page to Paint: Flannery O’Connor’s Artistic Legacy Beyond Writing

“Any discipline can help your writing: logic, mathematics, theology, and of course and particularly drawing,” Flannery O’Connor once wrote in her essay “The Nature and Aim of Fiction.” For O’Connor, the acclaimed Southern writer best known for her sharp prose and uncompromising depictions of human nature, this was more than theory—it was a practice she lived by.

Best known for her powerful short stories and novels, Flannery O’Connor also possessed a lesser-known but equally compelling talent: visual art. From her early days drawing cartoons to her later years painting at Andalusia, her family farm in Milledgeville, Georgia, visual expression remained a constant part of her creative life.

Now, in celebration of Flannery O’Connor’s 100th birthday on March 25, 2025, Georgia College & State University (GCSU), her alma mater, is shining a light on her artistic contributions with a special exhibition titled “Hidden Treasures.” This unique collection features 70 rare artworks by O’Connor—many of which are being displayed to the public for the first time.

A New View of Flannery O’Connor Through Art

The exhibit, hosted at the Andalusia Interpretive Center in Milledgeville, Georgia, where Flannery O’Connor spent the last 14 years of her life, offers a more intimate look at the artist behind the author. According to literary scholar Katie Simon, interim executive director of the Flannery O’Connor Institute for the Humanities at GCSU, these works prove that O’Connor remained visually creative until her death in 1964.

“Scholars continue to study Flannery O’Connor and use her as a model in creative writing programs,” Simon explains. “She’s long been recognized as a literary icon, but now we’re beginning to understand her as a visual artist, too.”

Cartoons, Caricatures, and Self-Portraits

Long before she earned a place among America’s greatest writers, Flannery O’Connor was creating cartoons and caricatures for her high school and college newspapers. Even as her writing career flourished, her passion for drawing and painting never faded. Her body of work includes oil paintings, linoleum-block prints, and sensitive portraits—all marked by the same observational precision that defines her fiction.

One of the earliest pieces in the “Hidden Treasures” exhibit is a self-portrait painted shortly after O’Connor was diagnosed with lupus in 1950. In the painting, she wears a halo-like straw hat and holds a pheasant, both figures staring directly at the viewer. According to Simon, the piece is layered with meaning. “It’s hilarious and poignant,” she says. “She’s like, ‘Look at me, American Gothic. I’m sick. I was forced to come back to Milledgeville. But I’m a saint.’”

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Why Her Art Was Hidden for So Long

Despite her prolific creativity, many of Flannery O’Connor’s visual artworks were hidden away for decades. As Cassie Munnell, curator at Andalusia, tells Georgia Public Broadcasting (GPB), the paintings were stashed in a storage unit behind a fast-food restaurant. “Only her family knew exactly where they were,” Munnell notes.

Farrell O’Gorman, a trustee of the Flannery O’Connor estate, believes the decision to keep her art in storage was intentional. “Her mother and early estate trustees were concerned the paintings might distract from her achievements as a writer,” he tells the New York Times. They feared the public might not take her visual work seriously, or worse, that it might overshadow her literary legacy.

Rural Roots and Religious Symbolism

Flannery O’Connor’s visual art, like her writing, was deeply rooted in her Southern upbringing and Catholic faith. Many pieces in the exhibition reflect the rural surroundings of Andalusia—bright depictions of peafowl, flowers, and quiet farmhouses. But others delve into more personal and symbolic territory.

Her attention to people remained a constant. O’Connor created both satirical cartoons of college friends and tender portraits of those around her. One striking example is a drawing of a Black woman, likely a farm worker, crocheting—a subtle yet powerful reminder of the everyday lives that influenced O’Connor’s storytelling.

Parallels Between Prose and Paint

The artworks showcased in “Hidden Treasures” don’t detract from Flannery O’Connor’s writing—they enrich it. As Munnell explains to Artnet News, “Her fiction is often quite dramatic, and her characters are described in bold, vivid ways. That energy is reflected in how she painted.”

Indeed, the same attention to character detail and dramatic composition that marks O’Connor’s short stories like “A Good Man is Hard to Find” and “Everything That Rises Must Converge” appears in her visual pieces. These paintings and sketches offer a new lens through which to appreciate her storytelling—full of empathy, irony, and a deep understanding of human complexity.

Creativity in Isolation

Diagnosed with lupus at age 25, Flannery O’Connor returned to Milledgeville, where she spent much of her remaining years confined to the first floor of the Andalusia farmhouse. This period of physical limitation sharpened her creative focus. When she wasn’t tending to her beloved peafowl or attending mass, O’Connor was writing or painting.

Art became a form of exploration during a time of immobility. Her works from this period include still lifes and symbolic compositions that explore themes of faith, identity, and mortality. The bold color choices and structured layouts reflect a mind constantly seeking clarity and truth—much like her literary voice.

Exploring New Mediums

In her later years, Flannery O’Connor also experimented with different artistic mediums. Inspired by other great artists, she explored etching, lithography, and aquatints. Though not formally trained in these techniques, she collaborated with experts in the field to bring her vision to life.

This openness to new forms and methods mirrors her literary innovation. Just as her stories broke away from romanticized Southern narratives, her visual art defied easy categorization—simultaneously modern and traditional, humorous and spiritual.

A Growing Recognition

Today, there’s a growing movement among scholars and fans to recognize Flannery O’Connor not just as a writer but as a multidisciplinary artist. The “Hidden Treasures” exhibition is an important step in expanding the public’s understanding of her creative legacy.

The artworks reveal a side of Flannery O’Connor that is often overlooked—a visual thinker who saw the world with unique clarity and translated that vision into both words and images. Her art, much like her writing, forces us to look, to question, and to reflect.

Visit the Exhibition

“Hidden Treasures” is on view at the Andalusia Interpretive Center in Milledgeville, Georgia, through summer 2025. Whether you’re a long-time admirer of Flannery O’Connor or discovering her work for the first time, the exhibit offers a rare and rewarding glimpse into the full breadth of her artistic genius.

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