Laura Jeanne Grimes, artist
  • Home
  • Blog
  • Mask Series
  • Cellphie Series
  • Women and Dogs
  • Fathers
  • Hijab series
  • Various Subjects
  • Digital Photography
  • Field Sketches
  • Drawings
  • Paintings
  • Books

Elizabeth Reifsnyder. March 19, 1922-November 4, 2010

11/29/2010

1 Comment

 
Betty’s memorial service happened this past Saturday, November 27th, 2010.  The family gave me the great privilege of helping them by mounting an exhibit of her artwork for the service.   Saturday morning, 10:00 am, we met at the church.  It took about 3 hours to hang the show.  Hanging always takes longer than you plan on.  My system for hanging the matted pieces didn’t work.  But, my back up plan (table easels) did.  The framed pieces were not a problem to hang – except, the decisions about what hangs where, next to which piece, takes awhile.  Do you hang according to theme?  Medium?  Size?  What colors look together?  Yes, you look at all of that.  We got it done, with a lot of help. 

 The service was at 4:00 pm.  Betty’s loving family was there.  And, her friends were there – art friends, film group friends, tennis friends, church friends, symphony volunteer friends.   Living representations of her wide range of activities.  

 She had kept her life compartmentalized.  Few of the non-art friends even knew she was an artist.  The exhibit of her works blew them away.  “I had no idea!,” many exclaimed.  The strength of the work also amazed them.  She had never become a “Name Artist”.  But her work could stand up with many you would see in a museum.  At the age of 88, she kept doing her artwork.  Artists have to keep at it, recognition or not.

 
Such an amazing privilege be involved!  I had spent a few days with her daughter-in-law, looking thru stacks and stacks of drawings and prints.  I didn’t even know she had done printmaking!  She worked in several media.  We found a few self-portraits.   Her self-portraits were fearless.  Non-artists don’t understand why self-portraits don’t look like glamour shot photos.  But true artists do not flinch from the evidence of the mirror.

 The exhibit had to come down after the service was over.  A shame it couldn’t have stayed up for a month! 

 I didn't take photos of the exhibit.  I was so busy with the details of getting it together, I didn’t even remember my camera.  I wish I could show you the mid-century modern sensibility of so much of her work.  The intelligence of her mind, the sharpness of her observations. 

 At the age of 88, she had lived a rich, full life.  She died in her own home, with hospice care, loving family at her side.  “A good death,” the church pastor had said.  If a death can indeed be “good”— yes hers was.  She will be sorely missed by her family, by her friends.  She is irreplaceable.  

I have two of her drawings.  She came to my lifedrawing open studio every Tuesday morning, unless sick or out of town.  Occasionally, a model pulls a no-show.  When that happens, I model.  In deference to my husband, who would blow a gasket if I went full monty, I pose in sports bra and bike tights.  Her are two of Betty’s drawings of me.  In one, she draws me as if I were nude.  The other, done perhaps a year later, keeps the clothing on.  I think the earlier one is the stronger piece.  But, only my opinion.  I will treasure them both.


Picture
Laura Grimes, by Elizabeth Reifsnyder, watercolor

Picture
Laura Grimes, by Elizabeth Reifsnyder, pastel on paper


1 Comment
J. Krueger link
6/8/2017 07:10:32 am

Yes, she has done printmaking, and probably participated in the ISU Print Guild. We have several of her prints from the 1990s in the Permanent Art Collection at ISU, and at one point one of her oil paintings hung on campus that was purchased from the Swope in 1965. In one work, there are figures in the background that resemble the style of figure in your posted drawings. Thank you so much for sharing.

Reply



Leave a Reply.

    Archives

    October 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    September 2019
    June 2019
    February 2019
    November 2018
    July 2018
    March 2018
    August 2017
    April 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    June 2016
    November 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    April 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    June 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    January 2014
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    December 2012
    November 2012
    September 2012
    August 2012
    July 2012
    June 2012
    May 2012
    April 2012
    March 2012
    February 2012
    January 2012
    December 2011
    November 2011
    October 2011
    August 2011
    July 2011
    June 2011
    May 2011
    April 2011
    March 2011
    February 2011
    January 2011
    December 2010
    November 2010
    October 2010
    September 2010

    Categories

    All
    9th Grade Art
    Abbey Road Illustrations
    Aldo Giorgini
    Angels
    Animoto
    App
    Art
    Art Apps
    Artist
    Artrage
    Art Rage
    Bert Monroy
    Birth Of Venus
    Botero
    Botticelli
    Bronzino
    Byzantine
    Catacombs
    Christian Art
    Christo
    Coal Mining
    Collaboration
    Comics App
    Daily Draw
    Daily Drawing
    David
    David Hockney
    Da Vinci
    Destruction Of Shalom
    Digital Art
    Drawing
    Drawing A Portrait
    Eduardo Gutekunst
    Ethel Caution-davis
    Figure
    Figure Drawing
    Fra Angelico
    Ghent Altarpiece
    Giotto
    Grunewald
    Half Tone
    Human Figure
    Ipad
    Ipad Art
    James Janknegt
    Lazarus
    Leon Golub
    Lifedrawing
    Life Drawing
    Lifedrawing. Figure Drawing
    Masks
    Maus
    Michelangelo
    Mona Lisa
    Museums
    Nativity
    Nicholas Evans
    Nina Mae McKinney
    Painting
    Parable
    Photography
    Photography Apps
    Pieta
    Plein Air
    Poetry
    Poor Man
    Portraits
    Ps Express
    Quantel Paintbox
    Ravenna
    Renaissance
    Rich Man
    Rogier Van Der Weyden
    Sculpture
    Self Portrait
    Self-portrait
    Simply HDR-HD
    Sketch Club
    Snoopy
    Spirits
    Stephen Spender
    Still Life
    Sunflower
    Texas
    Torture
    Underwater
    Vandalism Of Shalom
    Vann Nath
    Vasari
    Virgin Of The Rocks
    Wales
    Yeats
    Yellow Rose

    RSS Feed

Proudly powered by Weebly