The Art Box

Bilbo Picasso wanders too deep in the art closet where he meets former artist Van Smego, now known as Gollum, and must use his wit with art riddles to outsmart him and escape with his life.

Doug Herbert served both the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) and the U.S. Department of Education (ED) as an arts education program director and special assistant in his 30-year federal career. Between 1987 and 2004, Doug directed the NEA's Arts Education grants and technical assistance programs, initially as the assistant director and then as director for 12 years. There he initiated several interagency partnerships with the Department of Education in order to create nationwide surveys of the conditions of arts in schools. Doug also led federal efforts at the NEA to put the arts into the National Assessment of Educational Progress, widely known as The Nation's Report Card. At ED, Doug was a special assistant to former Secretary Rod Paige and then to several assistant deputy secretaries of innovation and improvement until his retirement at the end of 2017. At ED, he continued to foster or manage federal partnerships to assess arts achievement and determine the state of arts education. The Arts Education Partnership, which Doug was instrumental in creating in 1994, continues to serve as the nation's clearinghouse for arts education and brings together more than 100 arts, education, governance, and philanthropic organizations to advance arts education for all American students. Between 1980 and '86, Doug was director of the Very Special Arts Festival Program of VSA, an educational affiliate of The Kennedy Center. During this time, he fell in love with the Southwest, particularly Arizona and New Mexico. His career in arts and arts education administration began as the first managing director of The Publick Playhouse, a community performing arts center in the Maryland suburbs of the D.C. metro area. A graduate of the University of Maryland in 1972, Doug found his calling "behind the curtain" in community theatre following college and chose publicity and producing over acting and directing.

Linda Harris is a retired mathematics teacher who has lived with her husband in Mesquite since 2017. They were drawn to Mesquite by the golf, arts and culture, and the beautiful desert landscape. Linda received a B.S. in Applied Mathematics and a Masters in Education. She taught in Missouri for 25 years, and was also a curriculum specialist for her district. Linda is a self-taught artist, receiving no formal training after 9th grade art class. While in Missouri, Linda enjoyed porcelain art in her spare time. She attended porcelain art workshops around the country, and after retiring, bought her own kiln and taught porcelain art in her home. Upon moving to Mesquite, Linda became interested in watercolor, oils and acrylics. She took some watercolor classes and workshops, and found that she especially like painting portraits. She won awards in the Mesquite Fine Arts Gallery Exhibitions for four of her portraits, “Earth, Wind, and Fiery Redheads” (1st Place/2018), “A Special Sliver of Light,” (Best of Show/ Sponsor’s Choice/2019) and “Moonlit Vigil” (1st Place/2020), and Mesquite Mayor Al Litman (Honorable Mention/ 2021). Linda taught two of the GSWA classroom lessons in 2019, and became coordinator of the program the following year. She now oversees the free educational programs and workshops for VVAA, believing strongly in the mission “to promote the power of the arts for all ages and all cultures,” and the educational goals which support this mission. She is responsible for working with VVAA volunteers to plan, advertise and implement the programs, write grants which support the programs. She previously wrote the FY 2022 Arts Learning Project Grant to bring Artist/ Photographer Larry Burton to Mesquite as VVAA's first Artist in Residence during February 2022. She worked closely with Mr. Burton and the Project Director to plan activities and workshops, host community events, organize data, and write the final report. A recent grant has just been approved to bring Recycle and Reuse Artist Deborah Lambin here as February’s Artist in Residence. When not at the art gallery, Linda enjoys hiking in the beautiful desert landscape near Mesquite. She has two sons, a granddaughter, and two brothers and their families still in the Midwest.

Special Saturday night unannounced release of Floyd chatting with your co-hosts about his white on black pencil art.

Chris Picior A native of New York City, Chris began sketching people at Washington Square in Greenwich Village when she was 16. Her first job was at Ace Publishing Company in the Art Department, but it was short-lived as marriage and three children to support became a priority. When her children were little, she worked in oils and then moved to watercolor. Chris attended Queens College, Kathryn Gibbs Secretarial School, and Utica College before starting her 25-year career in radio management. While living in Florida, she decided on a career change to Natural Health. Chris received her massage license in Florida, then obtained a Bachelor of Natural Health Studies degree and a Doctor of Naturopathy degree from Clayton College of Natural Health in Birmingham, AL. While working at Clayton College as faculty and in admissions, she also had private practices in Atlanta and Birmingham. Her true love has always been art. After moving to Mesquite, she became active as a Community Educator for the Mesquite Citizens for Clean Indoor Air for eight years. She also joined a neighborhood group that used acrylics and became a member of the VVAA. Chris started with colored pencils, played with acrylics, and added ink to her new works. In December 2019, Councilman George Gault appointed her to the Mesquite Public Arts Commission. In January 2020, she was elected Chair and still holds that position. Also, that January, she became President of the Virgin Valley Artists' Association, which she retained until December 2021. As Past President, she works with the Membership Committee and actively promotes our group. Since retiring, one of her favorite hobbies has been making gourds into art pieces. Chris cleans, carves, creates, and decorates gourds, finding it is one of her favorite mediums. She loves learning new techniques and expanding her expertise. Making her artwork into cards intrigued her, but the best part is just having fun with her art. She is looking forward to a class in watercolor and learning more about acrylics and alcohol ink.

Mary was born and raised in Bountiful, Utah with two older brothers. She graduated from the University of Utah with a bachelor’s degree in Business Management. Her career was in Human Resources and Training Development for 20 years. At the age of 28, she had her one and only child, a beautiful son. Mary resided in Davis County until 2013, when she ventured out to live in Mesquite, NV where her beautiful mother and best friend were living. She started house cleaning and pet sitting businesses. She was thriving, making new friends, and enjoying the beautiful sunsets. Mary had a wonderful companion, Booper, a 100 lb. Mastiff. She also started volunteering at the Mesquite Animal Shelter and fostering adoptable pets through We Care for Animals. It was in Mesquite that she sang karaoke for the first time. She was hooked and so blessed to have found so many wonderful friends, some of whom she now considers family. In 2016, she found herself on a journey of cancer: stage 3B melanoma. Her life seemed to revolve around confusion, doctor appointments, scans, surgeries, treatment, medications, and side effects. Mary’s cancer spread throughout her body resulting in stage 4 metastatic melanoma. At this time her body was tired, and her mind focused on making peace with her new life (and the possibility of death) and the wonderful blessings she had been afforded throughout her life. Mary moved to St George, Utah in 2021 after her mother suddenly passed. She had a wonderful fiancé and was in remission! Yes, life changes very quickly. She met some great people at the Mesquite Cancer HELP Society and has been working there for four years as the Executive Director. Her life has found purpose again! She married a wonderful man and has a beautiful six-year-old granddaughter who is her Angel. Mary’s passion for helping others makes her life busy and whole. She is so grateful for the people in her life, animals, sunsets, music, and all of God's artwork. ***Life is Art, Paint your picture***