THURSDAY STARS OF TEXAS DEMONSTRATORS: Pottery, Quilting, and Spinning Yarn

BrownwoodNews – Art lovers of all ages may view the Stars of Texas Juried Art Exhibit February 10-23 at the Depot Civic and Cultural Center located at 600 E. Depot in Brownwood. Show hours are Monday-Friday from 9:00 am – 6:00 pm, Saturday from 10:00 am – 4:00 pm and Sunday from 1:00 pm – 4:00 pm.

Artwork that did not make the Stars of Texas Art Exhibit will be featured in the Salon des Refuses at the Brownwood Art Association Art Center, located at 215 Fisk Street during the above hours.

Demonstrations will also take place each day during exhibit hours from a variety of artists. There is no charge to enter the exhibit or attend the demonstrations.

Thursday’s Artists:

Ebba Paige Shelton has been the heart and soul of Paige Pottery for over three decades, but who’s counting?

Paige began studying art at an early age watching her mother paint portraits live in her home studio and paint beautiful landscapes all over central Texas & Hawaii as they traveled with Paige’s father’s as a career USAF pilot.  As a young girl born in the East Sweden area of Brady, she enjoyed the country life of their grandparents ranch, graduated from kindergarten in Germany, lived in Virginia for a few years and then moved back to Texas, all because her father was called back into service during the Korean war. 

Paige continued her interest in art and received a BFA from UT as she was so inspired and motivated by her ceramics and sculptural classes to move into a new direction with three dimensions.  Paige joined with a group of potters and made a business partnership at Westbank Pottery in Austin for many years, launching a career that took her to shows, galleries and teaching all over Texas and elsewhere.  Her artistic, colorful and detailed porcelain and stoneware is a pleasure to use and enjoy.  Paige enjoys teaching and inspiring young and old. Watching other artisans and participating in workshops has always brought her inspiration.  She and her husband Ray still live and work in their Bastrop County acreage near Bastrop State Park, even though her pottery building itself was lost in the worst fire in Texas history, the Bastrop complex fires of 2011. She wants everyone to know what a valuable experience the children in this community have with the opportunity to view excellent works of art in the exhibits at the Depot and to watch artisans demonstrating each day.

Lasha Dennis, a mostly self-taught seamstress and quilter of May TX, has enjoying sewing her entire adult life.  She especially enjoys quilting because as a homeschool mom of five she finds satisfaction in truly completed projects.  The house may not stay clean, her family will get hungry again and the garden always needs weeding, but a quilt stays finished.  She also loves that although she can’t draw or paint she can add beauty to the world and express herself artistically through sewing.

Hood Dendy, born in San Angelo, Texas, the sheep, goat, and alpaca capital of the world, was surprised in the 1960’s nobody in town could demonstrate a spinning wheel. He decided to buy one and learned a lot about the history of spinning. He found out, for example, that George Washington and his family spun and wove clothes for the US troops. For years, he has been explaining the art of hand spinning’s influence and impact on West Texas, stressing how much we owe our ancestors. He was invited to the first Texas State Arts and Crafts Fair in Kerrville and demonstrated there several times more in the 70’s.