Courtesy of the Jacksonville Center for the Arts

People, such as the model who sat for this piece by Chris Youngblood, have posed for the Floyd Figures Art Group over the years in a variety of garb.

FLOYD -- More than 20 years of work have gone into the current exhibit at the Jacksonville Center for the Arts Hayloft Gallery.

"Faces of Floyd" is a compilation of drawings, paintings and photos by 11 artists in the Floyd Figures Art Group, a drawing group that has been meeting and drawing people in Floyd since 1984.

The exhibit has drawings by each of the 11 regular members of the group with a section devoted to the same model drawn by different artists over the years.

There is no instructor and anyone of any skill level can come, pay $10 to help cover the cost of the room and model and draw, said Charlotte Atkins, a longtime member of the group.

"Everybody is just practicing at their different skill levels," Atkins said. "I'm excited about [the show] because it's very untraditional with 301 pieces, and I'm really curious to see how people will react to it."

The group started at the Old Church Gallery in Floyd because gallery founders Catherine Pauley and Sue Clinger wanted to find a way to draw in more adult participation, Pauley said.

After each session, members of the group line up and look at one another's works, but no one offers criticism or suggestions unless asked, Pauley said.

"We all draw, and everyone leaves each other alone," Pauley said. "We share at the end, but we only criticize by invitation."

It also helps each artist grow because they see how the other artists drew the same subject in a different way or medium, Pauley said.

"It's neat to look and see what someone else saw that you didn't see," Pauley said.

Ann Bower has posed at least six times for the group over a few years as another way to support local arts.

She's purchased some of the artwork of herself along with pictures of her family from the group -- her husband Rodger, daughter Amanda, 19, and son Raef, 23, have all posed as models for the group.

"My daughter came with me once when I posed to help with my hair and makeup," Ann Bower said. "When I was done, she said 'Mom that's so cool, I want to do that.' "

Ann Bower also plays Mrs. Claus each year, letting children tell their Christmas wishes and handing out presents in Floyd. She has posed twice for the group as Mrs. Claus and other times in various outfits over the years.

However, outfits are optional.

"We like nudes since it is a figure drawing group, but we don't push if they don't feel comfortable," Atkins said. "We've stopped people in the street and asked them to pose because they have interesting faces."

People have posed over the years in a variety of garb, from everyday clothing to a Roman-style outfit complete with toga, vase and leaf headpiece.

Colleen Redman first posed in 1990 and is planning to pose again in the coming months.

Redman is a writer, so she said she is thinking of posing with a pen and book or laptop. She was nude when she posed in 1990.

"I know some of the artists, and it's been fun to watch them grow over the past 20 years," Redman said.