Ellen Gabehart

"I started drawing at age three," says artist and teacher Ellen Gabehart, a native of the Bronx. "I went to the Student's Art League at 14." But her parents disapproved of art and forced her to take an office job. "They made me be a bookkeeper," she says. "I left for California at 17." Soon married with three children, Gabehart completed a degree in education with a minor in art. She taught grade school, took watercolor workshops, and often traveled on her own to draw and paint in the Southwest. On a rare trip north in the 70s she fell in love with Oregon, sold everything and moved to Gold Beach. "I started my art career at age 41," she notes, "teaching at SWOCC." Five years later, Gabehart moved to Eugene, where she has been teaching ever since in many settings. "I taught at Maude Kerns Art Center for 25 years," she says. "I've just quit -- I want to spend more time on my own work." Gabehart will still teach a few classes for seniors and kids. She travels to Mexico nearly every summer to draw and paint. See two recent works this month at the New Zone Gallery, 975 Oak Alley.