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Wednesday, December 7, 2016 The Nugget Newspaper, Sisters, Oregon
Library displays variety of local art
By Sue Stafford
Correspondent
Charlotte Nitcher recalls
that, as a very young child,
she discovered the fun of cre-
ative endeavors while draw-
ing lines in the talcum pow-
der soil of Florida. She hasn’t
stopped creating art in some
form or another since those
early days.
Many Sisters residents
know Nitcher as the pub-
lic services specialist at the
Sisters Library, where she
has worked for the past 20
years. Currently, her art-
work is on display at the
Friends of the Sisters Library
(FOSL) December exhibit in
the library community room.
Before viewing Nitcher’s
exhibit, visitors can view in
the lobby display case some
of the items that provided
inspiration for Nitcher’s
work.
Acrylics, oils, and oil pas-
tels are the most-used medi-
ums by Nitcher. She admits
her first love is drawing,
followed by painting, then
paper and printmaking.
As a child, Nitcher always
delighted in receiving a new
box of crayons. For her 10th
Christmas, she received a
real Sears art kit with quality
paper, graphite pencils, char-
coal, oil pastels, and kneaded
eraser. Using the books
included in the kit, she prac-
ticed shadowing and perspec-
tive, while honing her sketch-
ing skills.
Nitcher said that the oblig-
atory art classes in grade
school and junior high were
more about following direc-
tions and actually squashed
creativity. Rather than draw
a simple round red apple as
instructed, Nitcher drew an
apple cut open, with the seeds
exposed — not viewed posi-
tively by her teacher. So, the
budding artist created in pri-
vate, at home, and out among
the oak trees surrounding
her home in Albany, Oregon
where her family moved
when she was four.
Nitcher and her high
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school sweetheart husband
of 43 years, John, met while
playing in the band, he the
saxophone, she the clarinet.
They couldn’t actually date
until she turned 16, and five
years later they were mar-
ried. Following John’s grad-
uation from Oregon State
University, they lived in
Reedsport with their children
for 19 years before moving
to Central Oregon in 1995,
where they first lived east of
Sisters.
Following a dream in
which Nitcher saw a vision
of a house, she drew a sketch,
and her builder husband built
her the dream house on the
rim above Whychus Creek
Canyon, complete with a
separate art studio facing the
Cascades.
While her children were
growing up, Nitcher directed
her creativity toward proj-
ects involving the children’s
interests. She also taught
PHOTO BY SUE STAFFORD
Annie Painter with two of her young student artists.
string-quilting classes and
created wearable art for sale.
Quilting, fiber arts, sketching
and gardening provided cre-
ative outlets for her until she
began taking art classes at
the local community college
in 1990, followed by earning
her Bachelor of Science in
Liberal Studies from Linfield
College in 1993.
Inspiration for her art
seems to come to Nitcher
at any time of day or night,
in the shower, images from
dreams, in response to social
issues, and from nature, pho-
tography, and real life.
“Some of my ideas are
quirky,” Nitcher admits, as
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See LOCAL ART on page 31
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