Artwork by local artist Janey Hale’s will be featured on the first floor of Ozarks Small Business Incubator, 408 Washington Ave., through the end of March.
The West Plains Council on the Arts and OzSBI have partnered to bring quarterly art displays to the incubator. Visitors may view the display at the incubator during OzSBI’s business hours, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Monday-Friday.
“I can’t remember a time when I wasn’t interested in creating,” shared Hale. “My earliest memories are of making things out of everyday objects, matchboxes became covered wagons, doll beds and treasure chest. Going to school in the 50’s and 60’s I didn’t have formal art lessons. A touring show of Old Master Painting was my first experience with ‘real’ art. That show and an older high school student were the encouragement I needed to want to learn more.”
In college, Hale majored in business, not realizing teaching art or making a living by painting were possibilities, she said. She married, had three boys and worked jobs that made use of her business background. Once her sons were in school, she returned to college study art education, then spent 28 years teaching high school students that art enriches lives, she said.
“I was fortunate to have several gifted students along the way that I believe encouraged me as much as I did them,” she said.
Hale retired from teaching in 2016 and has since devoted her time to painting both in the studio and en plein air.
“I still can’t imagine a time when I won’t be creating,” she added. “Art has truly made my life richer, through the friends I’ve made, the places I’ve been, and of course the process of creating.
“I don’t have just one thing I like to paint. Could be the sun shining through a tree behind a chicken coop or an abandoned piece of farm machinery. I hope my works tell a story or evoke a memory. I feel so blessed to have this gift that I hope it blesses others when they view my work.”
A meet-the-artist event will be held from 2 to 4 p.m. Feb. 8 in OzSBI’s lobby. The public is invited to attend to meet Hale and view and discuss the pieces on display.
For more information about the exhibit, contact Madison Sutterfield at OzSBI by emailing madisonsutterfield@ozsbi.com, or arts council Coordinator Audrey Scott, audrey.scott@zizzers.org.
