Official artwork featuring Georgetown maritime landmark unveiled for 37th Annual Wooden Boat Show

Friends of The South Carolina Maritime Museum gathered last Thursday evening for the unveiling of the official artwork for the 37th Annual Georgetown Wooden Boat Show, created by this year’s featured artist, Vida Miller.

Miller’s original pastel painting captures an iconic piece of Georgetown’s maritime history—Rene Cathou’s old fish house—in vivid detail. Framed through the generosity of Gray Man Gallery, the beautiful painting will be auctioned during the Goat Island Yacht Club Auction on Friday, October 16, 2026.

The work depicts a classic wooden boat moored in front of the historic Rene Cathou Fish House on the Georgetown waterfront, a scene shaped by Miller’s personal friendships with the local shrimpers and fishermen who frequented the building. 

Miller is a local treasure herself, having served on the Georgetown County School Board for eight years and then for 14 years in the state’s General Assembly representing District 108. During her time as a legislator, Miller secured critical state funding to install the historic Brown’s Ferry Vessel—the oldest wooden boat in America—at The Rice Museum, where she serves on the board of directors.

As an artist, Miller is known for award-winning work focused on coastal Carolina landscapes, wildlife, and historic maritime scenes. She founded Gray Man Gallery in 1980 and the Waccamaw Neck Arts Alliance, and she serves on the South Carolina Arts Foundation Board.

Unframed fish house posters are available for $25 at the museum and at the Gray Man Gallery. Miller’s artwork will also appear on the festival’s annual T-shirts, which will be available during the October 17-18 festival in downtown Georgetown along Front Street and the waterfront.

Proceeds from the Wooden Boat Show support the South Carolina Maritime Museum’s mission to preserve and promote South Carolina’s maritime history, culture, and heritage through education and community engagement for all ages.