ADAI Memories from Betty Husted
My memory may be faulty but I’ve learned to compensate by going through my life-long accumulation of STUFF (which I always said would come in handy some day.) So, when this opportunity to blog came along, I pulled out my stash of historic IMAGE newsletters from the good ole days of 1979-80. That was the time when I served as leader of Iowa’s fabulous art directors.
With the guidance of Harry Watts and everybody else who succumbed to my pleas for help we put together some great meetings which are well documented in these musty archives. Judging from the photos, we had a jolly good time eating, drinking and behaving like children let out for recess after a hard day of drawing and pasting.
One of my presidential duties was to invite interesting speakers who, if they were local, would share their expertise in return for dinner and drinks. However, once a year we popped for travel and lodging in order to bring in illustrious illustrators like: Mark English, Bart Forbes and Alan Cober. During my tenure, we chose another star of the fabulous Illustrators Workshop, Fred Otnes, as our big time presenter for the year.
I was very nervous about phoning him, thinking that with all his fame I wouldn't get to speak to him directly but, low and behold---Fred picked up the phone on the second ring. He told me that he and his wife, Fran, would be happy to come to Des Moines because they had been thinking about a Midwest trip to Kansas to see his relatives. Feeling like a big cheapskate, I had to explain that we probably couldn’t afford to fly them both here from their home in Connecticut but that I would consult with the board and get back to him soon.
To my relief, our resourceful creative thinkers came up with a way to make it all work. We would ask him to be a judge for our annual Exhibition. We would be funding the expenses of three judges anyway so this was an opportunity to have one of the top designers in the country not only tell us the secrets of his amazing collage illustrations but, evaluate our works as well.
Co-Exhibition Chair persons: Doris Meacham and Deetra Leech were thrilled to have a nationally recognized illustrator judge our show along with John Mann and Peter Vane.
The afternoon of March 28th, I picked up Fred Otnes and his wife, Fran, at the airport. We drove out to Traders, a popular bar near DMACC, and enjoyed Happy Hour with other ADAI members before a special dinner prepared by the DMACC students. The Otnes’s were very friendly and before the evening was over, I felt like I had known them for ever. Later during his talk in the DMAAC auditorium, Fred showed us his amazing layering techniques and answered every question we could think of.
The next day while he and fellow judges worked their way through the piles of entries laid out on Meredith’s cafeteria tables, Fran and I WENT SHOPPING. She wanted to browse our local antique shops and second hand book stores for ephemeral material that Fred could use in his work. She was a delightful companion and we had a great time prowling through the old shops in Valley Junction. I still have the intriguing collage poster he created for our club hanging on the wall of my studio at home.
Shortly after retiring from the commercial art world in 1991, I satisfied a life long ambition to be on stage. I became a children’s entertainer and worked my way around Iowa telling stories in schools, churches and various venues. That endeavor led to public speaking and entertaining adults. I am retired now and spend a great deal of time painting and creating my own collages and assemblages. At last I can play with all the STUFF I’ve collected since Fred and Fran Otnes came to an ADAI meeting almost (gulp) thirty years ago.
With the guidance of Harry Watts and everybody else who succumbed to my pleas for help we put together some great meetings which are well documented in these musty archives. Judging from the photos, we had a jolly good time eating, drinking and behaving like children let out for recess after a hard day of drawing and pasting.
One of my presidential duties was to invite interesting speakers who, if they were local, would share their expertise in return for dinner and drinks. However, once a year we popped for travel and lodging in order to bring in illustrious illustrators like: Mark English, Bart Forbes and Alan Cober. During my tenure, we chose another star of the fabulous Illustrators Workshop, Fred Otnes, as our big time presenter for the year.
I was very nervous about phoning him, thinking that with all his fame I wouldn't get to speak to him directly but, low and behold---Fred picked up the phone on the second ring. He told me that he and his wife, Fran, would be happy to come to Des Moines because they had been thinking about a Midwest trip to Kansas to see his relatives. Feeling like a big cheapskate, I had to explain that we probably couldn’t afford to fly them both here from their home in Connecticut but that I would consult with the board and get back to him soon.
To my relief, our resourceful creative thinkers came up with a way to make it all work. We would ask him to be a judge for our annual Exhibition. We would be funding the expenses of three judges anyway so this was an opportunity to have one of the top designers in the country not only tell us the secrets of his amazing collage illustrations but, evaluate our works as well.
Co-Exhibition Chair persons: Doris Meacham and Deetra Leech were thrilled to have a nationally recognized illustrator judge our show along with John Mann and Peter Vane.
The afternoon of March 28th, I picked up Fred Otnes and his wife, Fran, at the airport. We drove out to Traders, a popular bar near DMACC, and enjoyed Happy Hour with other ADAI members before a special dinner prepared by the DMACC students. The Otnes’s were very friendly and before the evening was over, I felt like I had known them for ever. Later during his talk in the DMAAC auditorium, Fred showed us his amazing layering techniques and answered every question we could think of.
The next day while he and fellow judges worked their way through the piles of entries laid out on Meredith’s cafeteria tables, Fran and I WENT SHOPPING. She wanted to browse our local antique shops and second hand book stores for ephemeral material that Fred could use in his work. She was a delightful companion and we had a great time prowling through the old shops in Valley Junction. I still have the intriguing collage poster he created for our club hanging on the wall of my studio at home.
Shortly after retiring from the commercial art world in 1991, I satisfied a life long ambition to be on stage. I became a children’s entertainer and worked my way around Iowa telling stories in schools, churches and various venues. That endeavor led to public speaking and entertaining adults. I am retired now and spend a great deal of time painting and creating my own collages and assemblages. At last I can play with all the STUFF I’ve collected since Fred and Fran Otnes came to an ADAI meeting almost (gulp) thirty years ago.
posted by Gordon at 12:47 PM
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