Fairhope artist Hannah Legg was recognized with an award from the Mobile Arts Council last week.

During their 20th-Annual Artys Award ceremony in Mobile on April 9, the Mobile Arts Council awarded Legg with a Visual Artist award, recognizing her as a "talented muralist, illustrator and designer whose vibrant work brings color and connection to our communities."

Born in England and raised in Fairhope, Legg has worked as a freelance artist but also runs her own business as a muralist. Much of her work can be found across Baldwin County and the Alabama coast, including Foley, Spanish Fort and Mobile. She has also collaborated with several nonprofit organizations, including Amp Up Arts, which is dedicated to art education for students in Alabama.

Most recently, she was selected as the featured artist for the 73rd-annual Fairhope Arts and Crafts Festival, where she painted a new mural located next to the Fairhope Welcome Center on Section Street, serving as a lasting tribute to the local artistic community and the festival's rich history. Her artwork can also be seen in Fairhope's Arts Alley.

During her acceptance speech, Legg compared her painting career to her time as a swimmer growing up, saying both can be humbling experiences. Whether it's broken goggles before a race or spilling paint all over yourself in front of a client, there are many opportunities to learn and grow.

"Both swimming and mural painting also can result in a significant amount of sunburn," Legg joked to the audience.

She thanked the Mobile Arts Council for the award and their services, while also taking time to thank her parents, her siblings, her fiancé, Jesse, and her friends for their support. She also applauded the many other artists in attendance and said she was glad to share a state with them.

"I consider it the highest honor of my life to be an artist," Legg said. "Public art is so important and I plan to continue to connect people and communities by making the world my canvas, to take messes and to turn them into something that makes people smile, to live colorfully and support others doing the same, and to share my knowledge and passion for what I do with others through organizations like Amp Up Arts for as long as these very broad swimming shoulders will help me hold a brush."