Remembering Delma

Delma M. Petrullo

September 24, 1948-June 3, 2009

You Can Make A Difference

By Getting Involved

Today makes it one month since Delma passed away. If you are new to this organization, then perhaps you did not get a chance to know what a remarkable person Delma was. For those of us who have been here for a few years, we know that we have all been affected in positive ways. I can't even begin to do her justice! I think, though, if you were to Google her name, it might give you a good glimmer that she was a force to be reckoned with. And that she had laid the groundwork for many good causes. We are all the fortunate recipients of that work.

Not only are we the recipients, but we can all choose to become the ones who will continue what she has started and see to it that the legacy she left us is carried on. It's always better to be a part of the solution instead of a critic to the problems. I do hope that you make an active choice to get involved. It is your community; much can be gained by your investing into it.We all know that "many hands make the work light".

I will end here with an image of a jar of paintbrushes from Delma's studio. These were the ones that she used for "texture". There are a variety of brushes in this jar. Some can make a lot of marks in one stroke, some make very tiny, detailed marks.One brush has only four hairs on it! The point is, this is who we are as a collective group. Some of us are able to make those broad strokes, and some of us do the fine, small strokes. All are important in painting that big picture. You don't have to be the one who does the broad strokes. Your contribution is needed and valued whether it is a broad, medium or detailed stroke. It all contributes in creating that big picture!

I would also encourage you to leave a comment to this post. I will be showing the post and comments to Delma's husband, Robert. I can't tell you how much it means to him to read how his wife has affected so many people. If you choose to use the "anonymous" method of commenting (to avoid creating a Blogger account), please use your name at the end of the comment so that we know who it is from.

Now, go out there and make a difference!

Fiber Arts Fiesta 2009

Newly joined member, Paula Snyder, a mixed media artist won first and third place in the doll category of the New Mexico Fiber Arts 2009 Fiesta!

Congratulations, Paula and welcome to the Rio Rancho Art Association!

To find out more about Paula and the dolls that she made, go visit her blog at Second Studio. Or, her website, Second Studio Mixed Media Art Gallery.

More photos from Studio Tour 2009

These photos are from Stop #5. Please forgive me but I don't have my list to show the names of who was at what stops. Feel free to fill in the blanks for me. My most sincere apologies

Artist In Residence Programs

Did you know that most of our National Parks have an "Artist In Residence" program? Each park has different stipulations as to what it entails, but all you need do is to type in a search for your favorite National Park and look for the program within their site. Even if there is none listed on the website, you might want to contact the park directly since information posted to these sites rarely happens in real time.

If you applied to the Hubbell Trading Post and got accepted, you would be staying on site at this hogan:

That's where RRAA member, Linda Laitner will be staying later on this year as SHE got accepted as an artist in residence at the Hubbell Trading Post in Arizona!

Congratulations, Linda!

Naturescapes 2009 Photo Salon at the Natural History Museum

The New Mexico Natural History Museum had a call for Naturescape Photography to be displayed May 23 through August 30, 2009. The theme was, "Being There: Photographers in Their Natural Habitat". It was a juried show and the catch was that you (the photographer) had to be in the image as "proof of your being there".

Only 30 images will be displayed in this exhibition. I put all my eggs in one basket and submitted one image I took back in March at a Wilderness area near Chaco Canyon called, Ah-Shi-Sle-Pah.

No Photoshop magic was used for this image. It was quite a comical scene to be running back and forth from my camera on the tripod, trying to figure out where I will be in the picture plane all while striking a pose. The timer on my camera is only 12 seconds, so that's how much time I had to "run and pose"! It's a good thing the shot was done in the middle of nowhere!

I'm happy to announce that my image made it into the show and won one of three honorable mentions! What a thrill!

John Curran and Nora Sanders at thier home with some of Nora's Chinese Brush art work in the background. (Stop 4)

Part of the 2009 Studio Tour photos

The Taylor's display thier crafts during the 2009 Studio Tour (Stop 1)

Carol Sanna with some over her photography (Stop 2)

Marilyn Meuret works on one of her wood carvings (Stop 3)

Van Emery stands beside one of her favorite paintings (Stop 3)