COLLEEN BRAND TO BE APRIL FEATURED ARTIST AT THE ARTS COUNCIL GALLERY

Local artist Colleen Brand loves color, and the vibrant hues in her many nature and travel inspired paintings seem to literally leap off the canvas, drawing the viewer into scenes that challenge us to experience, as if for the very first time, the profound, yet whimsical beauty of the world around us. Whether the subject is a Puerto Rican rain forest hut (complete with hot tub!), deer grazing in a Southwest Missouri wood, or her beloved schnauzer "Pookie" peeking slyly from the window of a passing car, Colleen's paintings show us, not only what these images "look like" to the eye, but how they "feel" when the eye, heart and imagination work together to catch a glimpse of the magic hidden beneath life's surface.

Colleen was born in Cleveland, Ohio in 1940. She moved to Jasper, Missouri in 1970, and later to Lamar. Her first job in the area was at Judy's Cafe in Jasper, followed by 30 years of service with O'Sullivan Industries. She worked for several years at Summer Fresh, Wal-Mart and Lamarti's, and even moved briefly to Tallahassee, Florida to work in construction, before returning to Lamar and retiring in 2009.

She got her start as an artist when she opened "Herbs R Food & Gift Chalet," a store on the Lamar Square selling herbs, gifts and handmade ceramics. Her friends Steve Ortner and his wife taught her how to make the ceramics, and she took naturally to painting small decorative scenes on items before their final glazing. Upon retirement, she rediscovered her talent for painting, and now gives full expression to her love of nature, travel, life and color on canvas instead of pottery. In the few short years since taking up the brush in 2009, she has produced more than 150 paintings.

Her work will be on display throughout the month of April in The Arts Council Gallery at 206 W 10th St., Lamar, on the northwest corner of the Square. An artist's reception will be held Saturday, April 2nd, from 2 PM to 4 PM at the Gallery, with hors d'oeuvres, drinks and sweet treats catered by The Wild Plum Cafe and Colleen's granddaughter, Brandi Beam. Both Saturday's reception and the full April art show are free and open to the public. All are invited to come and meet the artist Saturday afternoon, and to enjoy her work all month.