Original Watercolor Paintings by Springdale Centenarian on Display at the Global Campus

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Myrtle Laabs

FAYETTEVILLE, Ark. – Eighteen original watercolor paintings by Myrtle Laabs, age 104, will be on exhibit in the lobby of the Global Campus’ Center for Continuing Education, 2 E. Center St., Fayetteville, through June. The exhibit opens at 3 p.m. Thursday, April 23, with an art showcase and birthday party for Laabs, who will celebrate her 105^th birthday on April 26. This event is being held in conjunction with the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute’s spring 2009 membership meeting.

Hours for this special exhibition are from 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday through Friday. The exhibit is free and open to the public. Eighteen pieces will be displayed for viewing with some for sale. Inquiries to the artist maybe made at 479-751-3905.

Myrtle Laabs is an avid watercolorist and an experienced art teacher. She moved to northwest Arkansas five years ago from Springfield, Mo., to live with her daughter and son-in-law, Trina and Dick Oliver, in Springdale. Although at 104 her eyesight is not what it used to be, she has found ways to improvise when painting. Most of her watercolors are painted looking through a large magnifying glass, but she is starting to also use a special, angled paintbrush, custom designed by her son-in-law, whose purpose is to fit better under a television magnifying lens and enable her to create smaller details which otherwise would be impossible. Although Myrtle admits a difference in the amount of detail between earlier works and now, the beauty of the work still remains. Serenity, calmness and peace are the goals of many of her works.

Myrtle was an active and charter member of Studio 55 in Springfield, and had a piece in their annual show this year, as she has had since the group was begun by the Missouri State gerontology department 15 years ago. While still living in Springfield, she displayed paintings in several libraries and entered pieces in various shows where she has won awards, including one “Best of Show.” Myrtle entered the Ozarks Arts Alliance show at John Brown University on March 21, where she also won an award. In addition, she was highlighted by the staff of the Winthrop Rockefeller Institute for her attendance at last fall’s Art Escapes, a three-day visual arts workshop held at the Winthrop Rockefeller Institute on Petit Jean Mountain.

The Osher Institute at the University of Arkansas is the only Osher Lifelong Learning Institute in the state and one of more than 100 institutes that have been established thanks in part to a grant from the San Francisco-based Bernard Osher Foundation. The institute helps develop vibrant learning communities of students, age 50 and older, who are interested in learning for the joy of learning. Classes are available throughout the fall and spring.