North Central Arkansas (NCA) Art Gallery’s Featured Artist is Dr. Norman (Buddy) Pledger. Buddy will exhibit his painting at the new art gallery exhibit, April 9.
He was born in Baroda, India, to missionary parents. His family lived in India for 15 years, returning when Buddy was four years old to Shreveport where his father was a Methodist minister and sociology professor at Centenary College. Although Buddy has not returned to India, he still hopes to someday. His family still celebrates major holidays with Indian food, and they have many special mementos from those years in India. After completing medical school and a stint in the military, Buddy, his wife Linda and their two children moved to North Little Rock where he became a solo practitioner in Family Practice and she became a Professor at UA Little Rock. He and Linda currently live in North Little Rock and Fairfield Bay and will celebrate 50 years of marriage this year. Their daughter Kelly and her husband Matt Weeks are college professors at Rhodes College in Memphis Tennessee, where they are raising their two boys, Avery and Hayden. Matt’s parents live in Kentucky but also own a home in Fairfield Bay, so they all spend as much time at FFB as they can. Buddy and Linda’s son Matt is a middle school assistant principal in Fayetteville, where his wife Brandy is a middle school science teacher. They have two children, Savannah and Forest, and the cousins love to meet at FFB.
Buddy came into his art somewhat late in life when Linda first signed him up for a pottery class at the Arkansas Art Center in the late 1990’s. He became interested in painting when he attended a workshop on porcelain decorating at John Campbell Folk Center in North Carolina. He says he certainly is not a painter but would very much love to be one someday. He has taken pottery, drawing, and painting classes at the Arkansas Art Center and pottery classes at the Arkansas craft school in Mt View.
He currently enjoys painting with acrylics on canvas and wood and mainly does landscapes and abstract works. Buddy said he looks forward to learning more media and forms of art now that he has time in his retirement. He also plans to incorporate painting into his pottery. Currently his pottery is functional and art form pottery. He explains: “My greatest fan, next to Linda, was my mother-in-law, Betty Malone, who was a natural artist. She always encouraged me to stick with it; her quote was ‘it gets better with time and practice.’”
Linda is also a participating artist at the Gallery.
Buddy has taken pottery classes from David Dahlsted in Mt View and painting classes with Robert Bean at the Art Center. At this time he says they are his inspiration along with Linda’s Mom. “Linda has always liked everything I have done, good or bad. That helps me continue. Linda and I are very blessed to live in two homes that are in communities that encourage the arts so much.“ Be sure to see his painting that is now exhibited in the art gallery before the new exhibit April 9 goes up.
CALLING ALL ARTISTS!!!
The North Central Arkansas (NCA) Art Gallery invites Painters, 3 Dimensional Artists, and
photographers to submit works for the April 9 Art Exhibition in the Fairfield Bay Conference Center, 110 Lost Creek, Fairfield, Bay. The artwork is open to all artist eighteen years or older. Registration Forms are available at the Fairfield Bay Conference Center or e mail Charlotte Rierson, Art Gallery Coordinator –[email protected]. Deadline for registration form received is Mon. April 1. Mail to Charlotte Rierson, P.O. Box 1643, Fairfield Bay, AR 72088, or drop off at the Fairfield Bay Conference Center. Art Gallery hours are Tues. thru Fri. 9:00-4:00 unless special events or conferences then the hours will be extended. The viewing of the Art is open & free of charge to the
public. All art is available for purchase.