Eleatta paints messages of hope and inspiration. They are parables in color and texture. Like a story teller gathers tales, she has collected human emotion over her lifetime of creating. She says it all began with precariously balancing a sleeping cat and sketchbook. Her five year old fingers discovered the world of imagination. Immersing herself in scratchy lines and stubby crayons, she found her breath and her voice.
Life’s connecting dots began for Eleatta in Orangeburg, S.C., in 1957 where her talent was richly nurtured. Columbia’s University of South Carolina enriched her with a B.A. in Art Education. Marriage and five children wove together Seoul Korea and Boston Massachusetts. Durham, N.C. is currently the place where she, her husband, two children and dog, “Buddy” happily reside.
Although changes of life’s seasons have dictated a variety of expression, creativity has been the ever present undertow. Eleatta’s work is strewn along the East Coast both in private and public settings, including the University of South Carolina. The Center for the Performing Arts and G.S.K. Pharmaceuticals in N. C. also display her work. Over the years she has worked in batik, oil, paper mache, watercolor, dyes and has currently settled joyfully into acrylic.
Selected Exhibitions:
"Repurposed Beauty", GSK, Durham N.C. 2008
"A Change in the Wind", Durham Art Guild’s Annual Juried Exhibition, Durham Arts Council, Durham N.C. 2007
"Path of Hope", Contribution to the African Children’s Choir, Raleigh Center for the Performing Arts, Raleigh N.C. 2006
"Color Applications", Color Salon, Morrisville N.C, 2006
"999 Lives", Art of the Carolinas Traveling Exhibition, Columbia S.C. 1980
"Tea Bags", Permanent Faculty Exhibition, University of South Carolina, Columbia S.C. 1980.
Bodies of Work:
"Dream Series", Acrylic on canvas, 2008 An interpretive exploration of hope.
"Wax Relief", Waxes, dyes and inks. 2007 A visual investigation of color and texture.
"Repurposed Beauty", Relief sculptures created with recycled materials, painted in acrylic paints. 2007 Turning unwanted trash into desirable beauty.
"People in Contour", Graphite and ink studies. 2006 A collection of figure studies and facial portraits.
"Child’s Play", Watercolor sketches and paintings. 1990 Studies of children’s worlds.
"Floral Beauty", Pen and ink watercolors, colored pencil. 1985 A series of botanical studies.
Education:
University of South Carolina, B.A. Art Education, 1981
