{"type":"rich","version":"1.0","provider_name":"Transistor","provider_url":"https://transistor.fm","author_name":"Genuinely Southern","title":"Genuinely Southern, Ep.#5: Becoming \"The Artist\"","html":"","width":"100%","height":180,"duration":1575,"description":"Before the books, television, radio and decorating, Mark Ballard was a South Macon kid who drew on anything he could find. In this episode of Genuinely Southern, Mark tells the story of becoming “The Artist.” It begins with a third-grade teacher who recognized his talent and a mother determined to find a way to pay for art lessons. \nEnter Hauser Smith—a demanding, classically trained teacher who taught young Mark charcoal, oils and, most importantly, discipline. Those lessons eventually carried him from Macon to the Atlanta College of Art and back home again. \nAlong the way: nude models, a life-changing family crisis, Macon’s early Cherry Blossom Festival and the persistence required to turn talent into a career.\nIt’s the story of the people, places and unexpected moments that helped a little boy who loved to draw become “The Artist.”\nIn this episode:\nThe third-grade teacher who first recognized Mark’s artistic talent\n How his mother found a way to make private art lessons possible \n Meeting Hauser Smith—and learning discipline the hard way \n Why eight-year-old Mark’s pine cone made the adult students jealous \n Leaving Macon for the Atlanta College of Art \n A family crisis that brought Mark back home \n Finding his place in Macon’s emerging art scene \n How the Cherry Blossom Festival helped open an unexpected door \n Why persistence and discipline mattered just as much as talent in becoming “The Artist”\nChapters\n00:00  Welcome to Genuinely Southern\n02:15  The Teacher Who Saw Something\n04:23 Meet Hauser Smith\n05:14  The Eight-Year-Old & the Pine Cone\n06:51  Learning Discipline\n09:31  Off to Art School\n10:49  Mark Meets the Atlanta Art World\n12:22  A Life-Changing Phone Call\n14:50  Coming Home to Macon\n15:43  Cherry Blossoms & Opportunity\n18:11  A Painting Opens a Door\n19:30  Persistence Pays Off\n21:19  When Fate Clicks In\n24:10  Becoming “The Artist”","thumbnail_url":"https://img.transistorcdn.com/IxLv7U5lW_465VL4PWOitrc9qliSGwcQxWa-f_d9osA/rs:fill:0:0:1/w:400/h:400/q:60/mb:500000/aHR0cHM6Ly9pbWct/dXBsb2FkLXByb2R1/Y3Rpb24udHJhbnNp/c3Rvci5mbS8wNWZk/YzNmM2FkN2M5YWRl/OGY4NzY2NmRjYWJk/MDMwOC5qcGc.webp","thumbnail_width":300,"thumbnail_height":300}