Local artist JoAnn Cox has donated a large abstract painting to the University of South Alabama Libraries.

Her piece, “Dawn to Dusk,” will be hung in the atrium of the Main Library on campus.

“I was recently invited to exhibit some of my work at the USA Library where Dr. Wood and all of the staff were very supportive,” said Cox. “It is a pleasure for me to donate one of my paintings to the library.”

USA Libraries Dean Dr. Richard Wood said Cox’s gift will be a focal point for everyone who walks into the main library.

“Libraries should be a cultural center of campus,” he said. “Artists can come to get books about other artists and art techniques, and they can come and see the art here, too.”

A native of the Mississippi Delta, Cox has studied art at the University of Southern Mississippi, as well as in England, France and Ireland. Her works have won numerous awards and are represented in many public, corporate and private collections. She has had exhibits in New York City, New Orleans, and Florence, Italy. Locally she is represented by Ashland Gallery.