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PRIVATE PROJECT VIEW
Prepared for project partners and community stakeholders.
CATHERINE'S GIFTS
One handmade gift. A legacy that transformed a community.
Six larger-than-life bronze figures. Three moments in Catherine Evans Whitener's life.
One story of creativity, opportunity and community.
THE FINAL MAQUETTE — APPROVED DESING
CLIENT
Keep Dalton-Whitfield Beautiful
LOCATION
Dalton, Georgia
MEDIUM
Bronze
SCALE
1.25 larger than life-size
COMMISSIONED
June 11, 2025
UNVEILED
TBA
ONE GIFT. THREE MOMENTS. A LASTING LEGACY.
Catherine Evans Whitener could not have known that a handmade wedding gift would become the beginning of something much larger.
What followed was a story of creativity shared freely, opportunities created for families, and a community whose identity would become connected to the craft she helped inspire.
Catherine's Gifts is designed to honor that rippled effect — from one young woman's hands to generations of people whose lives and community were touched by what followed.
What inspires me most about Catherine's story is how simply it began. At fifteen years old she created her first bedspread, with no way of knowing where that small act of creativity would lead.
I want a child, teenager, a young adult—or someone later in life—to stand in front of this monument and see a little of themselves in her story. To understand that an idea doesn't have to begin big to matter, and it's never too late to begin something. What may seem simple today can grow, touch other lives, create opportunities and inspire people in ways we may never live to see.
— ALEX PAUL LOZA
Sculptor ​
THE FIRST GIFT
The Gift of Creativity
THE SECOND GIFT
The Gift of Opportunity
At fifteen years old, Catherine proudly presents the first tufted bedspread she created as a wedding gift for her brother and his bride. It is a simple moment—a young woman sharing something made by her own hands—without knowing that this small act of creativity would become the beginning of an extraordinary story.
Years later, Catherine's gift is no longer something she holds in her own hands. She is now sharing what she knows, teaching another woman the craft of tufting. As that knowledge passes from one person to another, it begins creating opportunities for women and families throughout the community.
UNDERSTANDING THE CRAFT
THE THIRD GIFT
The Gift of Legacy
Catherine, now a mature woman, watches the story grow beyond herself as bedspreads are prepared and displayed along Highway 41—the route that became known as "Peacock Alley." What began as one handmade gift has become part of the story and identity of an entire community. When installed, this scene will face the original Peacock Alley, connecting Catherine's story in bronze to the very place where that chapter of her legacy unfolded.
Before beginning the full-scale sculptures, I wanted to better understand the craft at the heart of Catherine's story. In August 2025, I visited the Hamilton House Museum with Amy Hartline, where the museum's director gave us a tour and shared valuable insight into the history and process of bedspread making. I was also able to photograph and closely study a bedspread made by Catherine Evans Whitener, along with other historic bedspreads and tools used in their creation.
In February 2026, I took that research a step further by attending a bedspread-making workshop, where I experienced the tufting process firsthand and gained a better understanding of how Catherine and generations of tufters created these works by hand.
These experiences are helping inform the details, gestures and bedspreads that will become part of the finished monument.
FROM MAQUETTE TO ARMATURE
With the design approve, Catherine's Gifts begins its transformation from small clay studies into six larger-than-life figures. Each figure starts with a structural armature made of metal and PVC pipes, followed by layers of foam that are trimmed and shaped to establish the proportions, pose and underlaying form before sculpting begins in oil-based clay.
This is one of the most important stages of the process. The armature establishes the anatomy, proportions and gesture of each figure, while the foam allows me to continue refining the forms—cutting, reshaping and adjusting them until the foundation feels right. The decisions made here will ultimately guide everything that follows in clay.
A gift becomes a craft.
A craft becomes an opportunity.
An opportunity helps transform a community.
THAT IS THE STORY OF CATHERINE'S GIFTS
THE THREAD THAT CONNECTS THEM
BRINGING THE FIGURES TO LIFE
A single bedspread design appears throughout all three scenes, creating a visual thread across Catherine's life. In the finished bronze, the bedspread will feature a distinctive colored patina against the traditional bronze of the figures, drawing the eye from the scene to the next.
To help develop the six larger-than-life figures, local residents from the Dalton community served as reference models.
The photo session provided valuable references for pose, gesture, posture and the natural interactions between the figures.
There is something especially meaningful about creating a monument to Dalton's history with the help of people who are part of the community today.
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