I began painting in oil 18 years ago as a hobby. This was to be a treat for myself and a break from my professional life as a home health nurse and supervisor. I rapidly discovered the joy of painting and within a few short years I began teaching oil painting. I currently teach five classes a week but haven't left the nursing completely behind. I teach painting as a volunteer to the Wellness Community, a cancer support program for those with cancer and their supporters. When a person who is fighting for their life can tell you that while painting for three hours, "nothing else mattered," you know that you have made a positive difference in their life.

I realize that in order to teach, I must also continue to learn. I've studied here in the States and in Europe. I feel as though I'll never be finished perfecting my skills and I tell my students that they should study with as many people as possible. There is always something to be gained even if what you learn is what you do not want to do. That lesson still helps give you direction.

I enjoy a variety of subject matter and styles. I do everything from still life, floral, landscape, pet portraits and religious works. My style is anything from Old Master style realism to heavily textured palette knife paintings. It's all fun and never boring. When students complain to me that they can't draw or will never get the use of the brush right, I tell them I started the very same way they are. And if I can have works in the American Kennel Club Museum of the Dog and religious works in the Vatican, then anyone can be successful at painting. Anything is possible if you remain full of expectation and enjoyment.

The Painter's Palette
Patricia Bistline
Chesterfield, MO
636-532-9264
e-mail Patricia
www.patbistline.com

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