Fall 2021 - A Remarkable Woman - Eloise Pickard Smith

“I say, from the start it was there: the vitality, the deliberateness, the purity. And throughout the years, with each visual shift of mode or direction, she continually held fire. You must see for yourself.” ~Donald Weygandt

Eloise Pickard Smith was a force of nature when it came to creating art and bringing art into the lives of the myriad lucky souls who entered her orbit. She was a gourmet cook, gardener and mother, raising four children who themselves went on to become respected artists. Eloise was a passionate community activist, successfully helping to block the building of a nuclear power plant. She did it all and she did it remarkably well.

Bringing together her art, personal and family life alongside her many professional accomplishments, this exhibit exemplifies the full breadth of her insight. It seems fitting that the beloved celebration of her one hundredth birthday shines here on the walls of the gallery she was determined to establish and now bears her name. 

With key loans from The William James Association we exhibit work from one of her most outstanding achievements, the California Prison Arts Project. Five decades since she launched it, it continues to bear witness to her belief that people could be redeemed by the act of making art. We thank Peter Merts for his compelling photography, beautifully illustrating the humanity art brings within the prison walls.

Be inspired and engage in following your own aspirations, be tenacious and always speak the truth. Eloise showed us that one person can have an enormous impact on the many.