Rosie Kuhn Bouse
Early relatives of Paint and Palette Club’s Joan McDermott arrived in the colonies aboard the Mayflower. Joan’s predecessors seemed to thrive by working with their hands. Her father, a part of the Fairbanks family, Herbert William Frink, Jr. designed forms to make hats for dapper gentlemen. Originally from Millis, Mass., outside of Boston, Joan attended John Robert Powers Finishing School. She soon rose from diligent student to becoming the Director of Finishing at the school. In this position she was in charge of 500 students and 30 teachers.
Joan married in 1962 and became a military bride for 13 years during which time she enjoyed life all around the world. Joan then lived in Killeen for 24 years and became very involved in the community. She participated in planning and zoning and opened her own drafting and rental businesses. She served as president of the Killeen Art league during which time she hosted elegant shows, exhibiting and selling many of her lovely paintings. She was curator of the Viva Les Arts and served on the board of the Art league where for the first time a gallery was established.
In 1986 when she retired, Joan and her husband built a beach house in the Galveston area where she again enjoyed involvement with the arts serving on boards in Galveston and Lake Jackson. Sadly, in 2008, Hurricane Ike destroyed their home, stripping them of her paintings, antiques, china, crystal and collectibles from abroad. After she and Frank moved to Robson Ranch to begin a new life in 2009, Joan became involved with VAST (Visual Art Society of Texas).
Joan’s son, Gavin Staples is a talented home builder in Weatherford, Texas.
All three of her granddaughters exhibit artistic talents. Her daughter Jonna, knowing of her mother’s love for the artist colony in San Miguel de Allende, treated Joan to a trip to this old Colonial town. It was there in Mexico in the 1950s that Joan fell in love with the arts.
Joan prefers to paint in oil but also has done lovely watercolor and clay sculpting. She has been enjoying the company of fellow artists at Robson Ranch since before the Paint and Palette Club was even formed and still cherishes their camaraderie. We are fortunate to have Joan as an accomplished member of the Paint and Palette Club.
Yearly membership for the Paint and Palette Club is $10. Third Monday experiences are a class or workshop. Flash Fridays are often spontaneous and announced prior to the date. Room 103 in the Creative Arts and Technology Center (CATC) is open for members to work on personal projects Mondays 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. and Fridays 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Visitors are welcome to drop in to observe real artists at work.