The J-TAC (Stephenville, Tex.), Ed. 1 Tuesday, September 22, 1981 Page: 5 of 8
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NOW OPEN
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Herbal Body Wrap
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student
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we buy anything
with 10,14 or 18 k. gold
198 N. Belknap
Stephenvilfe, Texas 76402
Phone: 965-4101
J-TAC Page S Sept. 22,1981
/
Grad student pursues art career
by Carol Daniel
Without comment,
Laura Butler sits back and
waits for a reaction to'her
latest work.
The colors are sharp,
vivid, capturing on canvas
the often overlooked
beauty of the central
Texas landscape.
"1 want to express the
roughness of the land,"
Laura says. "I'm so sick of
all those bluebonnet
paintings. 1 swear I'll never
paint bluebonnets,"
What she does paint are
the scenes we pass every
day, beautiful scenes we
forget to notice: doves
flying across an open field,
a cowboy bridling his
horse, a xpaint pony staring
suspiciously over his
shoulder.
Horses- are Laura's
favorite subject. "I could
draw one with my eyes
closed," Laura says with a
smile. "I could spend
hours just hanging over a
fence, staring at a field of
paints."
Laura, a graduate
assistant in the TSU
English department, has
been drawing since the age
of six.
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"All little girls draw
horses," she says. "I just
kept at it."
"I just love horses. I
read all the horse stories
when I was little. You
know, like Flicka and all
the others. I even like the
way horses smell," Laura
says with a laugh.
A native of Mingus,
Texas, Laura now lives in a
small house seven miles
outside Stephenville.
Although she doesn't
have a formal studio,
Laura works at her art
every day,
"I just sit in the middle
of the living room floor so
I can listen to TV while I
paint," she says.
Laura, with her blonde
hair and wide, eager eyes,
speaks directly and with
confidence in her artistic
ability.
"I plan to be the first
woman .in the NCAA
(National Cowboy Artists
Association)," she
says,"and I've sent some
cover art to magazines like
Piiint Horse Journal."
Her only formal
instruction has come from
Mark Davis, TSU assistant
professor of art.
"Mark has tried to get
me to do abstract like he
does," she says, " but I
just can't. I don't have
that in me. I have to work
from reality."
Although paint is her
primary medium, Laura
has done some sculpture.
Working with a
three-dimensional figure
helps her with her
painting, she says.
Laura uses acrylics
instead of oil, acrylics
being easier to work with,
the colors cleaner and
more appropriate for the
rough effect she strives for
in her paintings.
Laura has entered some
of her work in a few local
art shows, but she is
holding back to "go
professional."
For two^ years Laura
received "best of show"
ratings at the Hamilton art
show, and won third best
of show' at the
Stephenville art show last
year,
, Laura graduated from
TSU last year with a'B.A.
in English and is working
to receive her masters this
summer.
As a graduate assistant,
Laura teaches two
freshman English classes.
"I really love teaching.
I get along with the
students and I feel like I'm
reaching them more than I
did last year."
Laura hopes to
HlUiiiuiiuiSilihiiitiiktiniinoiJii
...
Laura Butler shows off artwork she has on display at
the Thompson Gallery of Original Art.
combine her writing with
her art. "I'd like to write a
book and illustrate it.
Maybe a children's book,
like Flicka."
Brad Thompson, owner
of the Thompson Gallery
of Art where some of the
most famous western
artists have had their work
displayed, is convinced
Laura could be as
successful as Kenneth
Wyatt.
"Laura will make it as a
landscape and western
artist," Thompson said.
"Some artists won't listen
to. good advice, but she
will. She'll listen and
work."
"It is my strong
opinion that artists are
born, not made," he
continued. "You have to
be born with a natural
talent. Laura has that
talent."
Laura will have her
work shown along with
two other "unknown
artists" sometime in
November or December at
the Thompson Gallery. As
Laura says, this will be just
a starting point for her
career as a western artist.
Limited parking space
contfrom p. 1
students' cars parked in
them most of the time.
There has also been some
trouble with students who
don't buy campus parking
stickers, and with commu-
ters who parte in dorm
parking lots. The campus
police haven't towed any
cars off yet, however.
Weiler said he would be
glad to talk to anyone about
the parking problems.
Off-campus student Kathy
Farrott said, "I didn't even
bother to buy a parking
sticker this semester. It
takes longer to find a
parking place than it takes
to walk (to the campus)
from where I live."
Robert ' ''ie, another
off-car . ''<?nt, said,
"I e: ; e trouble
on i ..iy ednesdays
and * ecause I don't
have class until nine and the
good parking places are
taken. I used to go to
Texas A&M though, so I'm
used to walking quite a
ways to class."
Dorm students have similar
problems with parking.
"At night, there isn't any
place to parte," said Tim
Stewart. "If you come in at
eleven, you might as well
park at Safeway, and you
can get a ticket for that too.
They need another parking
lot."
Another dorm student,
Kathy Smith, said, "It's
very hard to find a parking
place - always. And es-
pecially early in the morn-
ing."
Weiler said, "I think that
in the future -- maybe two
years from now -- the
parking will be at such a
premium that there won't
be much parking on campus
except for dorm students.''
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The J-TAC (Stephenville, Tex.), Ed. 1 Tuesday, September 22, 1981, newspaper, September 22, 1981; (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth141482/m1/5/: accessed July 17, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu; crediting Tarleton State University.