Page 22 - South Mississippi Living - September, 2022

ARTS
story by Lynn Lofton photos by Katherine Sowers
To most people starfish are just starfish, but to Amy Covington Hudson they represent much more. She sees renewal, hope and creativity in these sea creatures that have the ability to regrow lost or broken limbs. In 2015 she hand crafted a few starfish trees for display in her shop, Flair, in Bay St. Louis.
After a spinal injury sidelined Hudson from her business and many other things in life, she was in intense pain and had to close the shop. “I felt lost and broken, and in mental and physical pain, I searched for answers,” she says. “My renewal came from these inspirational little stars, each with arms tipped upwards toward the heavens.”
In 2018 she began making starfish trees in earnest
as a creative and mental outlet after surgery didn't completely free her of pain. When she and husband Mac moved back to Gulfport, Amy turned their garage into a starfish tree workshop and channeled her creative efforts into the 24-step process of these mixed media art pieces. A neighbor and artist, Cissy Quinn, suggested that she and Hudson have a pop-up yard sale. That brought attention and orders for Hudson's creations started growing. She still had an online site from her shop which turned out a perfect setup for selling the trees. Another boost came last year when she was invited to be part of a Christmas trunk show at Beau Rivage Casino. Now she is carefully adding some local retail outlets.
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September 2022
www.smliving.net | SOUTH MISSISSIPPI Living
S tarfish Trees AMY COVINGTON HUDSON