“I taught art, humanities, and English at Pine Bluff High School from 1969-1985 before becoming a school
administrator, but never got into pastels until retirement from the State Department of Education in 1993.

It was an immediate fit for me! I started taking workshops from renowned pastelists, such as Bob Rohm and Larry Blovits. I was already a member of the Mid-Southern Watercolorists and the Pastel Society of the Southwest, but when I looked for a group of pastelists in Arkansas, there was nothing. But I knew of others who loved pastels, so I contacted some I knew including Cathy Spann, and she and I got others interested.

And Whoopee! Look at us now! I am so proud of the many great artists in our society, including some with national recognition!”

“As I look back on the history of the Arkansas Pastel Society, I am extremely proud to be one of the Charter Members. We started with a very small group of passionate pastelists and have become a strong pastel society. We have done some remarkable things in our first 20 years. Each of the Charter Members has memories of their part in creating this society.

I remember I was hesitant to volunteer to be the first
and was so glad that Cathy Spann agreed to do that. She did an excellent job! I volunteered to do the minutes and the documentation.

Our first by-laws were approved in June 2004. I volunteered to write them because I had done that sort of thing before. We all seemed to volunteer for things we each felt we could handle, and it worked. It continues to work! Thanks to all the volunteers who have taken part in forming and strengthening this energetic pastel society.

“I was a new pastelist looking for a group to join when I found my way to Mary Anne’s listing. I learned there was no group, only interest in forming one. I think there were between 7 and 15 people at that organizational meeting. We talked about our dreams, how to form a society, and what kind of society we wanted. We agreed there was a need and enough interest to begin a Pastel Society. We had no idea what a wonderful support group we were beginning. We dreamed big as we planned our first workshop. We called Maggie Price and were so excited when she came to Arkansas, she and a friend created the Pastel Journal. She was so helpful to us as artists and as a new pastel group. Our second workshop was Kitty Wallace, her sanded paper was the chosen paper of everyone at the time. This started us on the road to always having excellent artists for our workshops. I believe that APS, and the friends I’ve made and all that I’ve learned are why I still love pastel. Here’s hoping for another 20 years!”