Selma born and raised artist Frank Hardy’s Emancipated Art Exhibition opens today at Stephen Smith Fine Art in Fairfield.

The five-week exhibition features more than 70 newly added and previously unseen pieces of artwork.

Hardy considers himself a storyteller, each of his works telling a tale from his own experiences and observations.

Hardy believes, as an artist, he has a moral obligation to share his God-given talent with the world.

Hardy, who is completely self-taught, first began to draw as an escape.

“I was an angry kid,” said Hardy. “For me, art was my sanctuary. I would just go off and draw by myself.”

Hardy began to share his art with others as he became a young man, mostly to impress young ladies.

“I was a bad kid,” said Hardy. “I was in fights all the time. My grades weren’t the best. I was the kid fathers wanted their daughters to stay away from. But my art made me special. It made me feel like I had value.”

As he became a young adult, Hardy faced much rejection from galleries before he found his audience.

“They told me it was too urban or too black,” said Frank. “They would find reasons not to show my art.”

The rejection fueled Hardy further inspiring his passion to create.

“It hurt, but it didn’t bother me too much,” he said. “Every successful person has faced rejection at some point.”

Now that Hardy has found an audience, he says that all of that rejection is worth it.

He’s now had the opportunity to present his works across the country including Georgia and South Carolina.

Hardy isn’t only a visual artist, he’s also written a fantasy fiction novel entitled “Rise of the Emancipator”.

Hardy will continue to push the boundaries of his art with storytelling, dance and dramatic monologues following his final exhibition in Fairfield on Nov. 2.

“My art embraces life through images of nurturing struggle, fear, pain strength and beauty,” said Hardy. “These pieces tell stories of Americans’ history, black life and the buoyancy of redemption. This is a unique opportunity for the people in Birmingham and surrounding area to come and take a journey with me through my artwork.”

Though his next show is in Birmingham, Hardy said he plans to bring his creative talents to Selma in the near future.

“Selma will always be my home,” he said.