ABOUT US

Bess Duston was attended the following colleges and universities: Phillips University, Enid, Oklahoma; Northeastern State College, Tahlequah, Oklahoma, Bachelor of Art in Education; Penn Valley Community College, Kansas City, Missouri.

Professionally she has taught elementary art, worked as a lithographic artist for Hallmark Cards. Currently, she works out of a studio in her home in Kansas City, Missouri. She is a member of the Northland Art League, Images II, Northland Exposures Art Cooperative, and the Greater Kansas City Art Association.

JURIED SHOWS:

Kansas Watercolor Society Show, Wichita, Ks. in 1987,1991,1993,1995, and 1998.

Catharine Lorillard Wolfe Art Club 99th Exhibition, New York City, N.Y. 1995

Oklahoma Art Workshops 12th Annual National Juried Exhibition, Tulsa, Ok. 1995.

Western Colorado Watercolor Society's National Exhibition, 1996, Oklahoma National Watercolor Exhibition, Oklahoma City, OK. 1999.

GALLERIES:

Bess is currently exhibiting in the following: Images Art Gallery, Kansas City, Mo., Wichita Art Museum Shop, Wichita, Ks., Northland Exposures Artists' Gallery, Parkville, MO

COLLECTIONS:
Her work can be found in private collections in Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma, Minnesota, Colorado, Florida, and Japan.

Artist's Statement:

Flowers and nature have been a part of my life from my childhood visits to my grandparents' home in the Ozark mountains near Eureka Springs, Arkansas and the days of wandering the woods nearby and bringing home various wild flowers or branches of flowering trees. Drawing was an early interest, on the backs of calendars or anything else I could find.

My interest in art continued through college with a degree in art education, teaching elementary art for one year, then working as a lithographic artist for Hallmark Cards. I now work from a studio in my home. The past several years, I have begun to concentrate
almost entirely on portraying flowers and unusual trees, either from the area in which I live, or from travels. I work in screen printing (serigraphy) and watercolor, both of which I attempt to do very realistic images of the subject that I select. As reference
material, I use photos that I have taken, sometimes combining more than one photo to arrive at a satisfactory composition. Whether in watercolor painting or screen-printing, I look for strong contrasts in the pieces that I produce. Portraying the beauty that surrounds us is the challenge I give myself and I hope this is evident to those who view the pieces.

I have thoughts of putting some product on the market. It was only this year when Galaxy Mall had a seminar on starting an e-business that it came together. My wife and I have admired Bess Duston's work and have had one of her serigraph in pieces in our home for a number of years. She is an excellent artist and a good friend.

Ted and Charlice Talbott