Each summer, 25 to 30 OSU students travel to the Doel Reed Center in Taos for a one-of-a-kind cultural experience and credit courses. Located in beautiful Taos, New Mexico, the Doel Reed Center allows students to take in the rich culture and history of Northern New Mexico while learning unique and valuable skills through the diverse courses offered.

These courses often expose students to new topics and ways of thinking and can even impact their approach to their education.

“Whenever students have the opportunity to experience a form of life outside of their known cultural experience, it moves them closer to appreciating the variety and richness within humankind,” Oklahoma State University Professor Chris Ramsay said. “The experience gleaned from travel programs is without a doubt priceless, and compared to travel abroad programs, this experience is much more accessible, being only a 10-hour drive away.”

Ramsay taught a jewelry making course in Taos this past summer and saw first-hand how scholarships gave students access to this experience.

“The majority of students I’m familiar with use the summer as a time to return home and work to support themselves financially through the fall and spring semesters,” he said. “I’m not sure how many of them would be able to afford losing out on working for a travel course without a scholarship.”

As many as 26 scholarships are given for the students to attend the various summer classes that range from creative writing to clothing and textile design, and jewelry making. "Scholarships end up being the deciding factor for whether many students can attend," said Carol Moder, Director of the Doel Reed Center.

Currently, there are five endowed funds that assist students in accessing these incredible courses and cultural experiences. The Doel Reed Center for the Arts Annual Scholarship Fund, Dave and Louise Maher Endowed Scholarship, Smelser-Vallion Endowed Scholarship, Franklin and Louise Nash Endowed Scholarship and the Estelle A. Hammond Endowed Scholarship. Each fund provides $1,000 to $1,250 to its recipients.

The Doel Reed Center would like to grow scholarship support enough to fund the full cost of attendance for each of its student participants.

Paul Armstrong attended Sarah Beth Childers’ class on non-fiction creative writing this past summer. The Ph.D. creative non-fiction student said he would have missed the opportunity without the support of the Smelser-Vallion scholarship.

“I experienced a great personal cultural growth and awareness through this class in Taos,” Armstrong said.

“I would have taken this much-needed class this coming fall semester in Stillwater, but Professor Childers is on leave in the fall,” he said. “Since I am close to finishing my Ph.D. course, not being able to enroll in this summer class would have significantly delayed my scholarly process and could have detrimentally affected my ability to graduate in a timely manner.”

Armstrong’s experience was made possible by the generosity and support of donors, for which the Doel Reed Center is extremely grateful.

For more information on how you can help create more opportunities for students, contact Deb Engle at 405.385.5600 or dengle@osugiving.com.

We have some great summer courses set for July 20-24! Full course details can be found below. Enrollment opens in December. Make sure to enroll before March 31 for a discounted price of $550. We hope to see you this summer!

2020 Classes

Flyfishing — Beginning and Intermediate | Instructor to be announced

Learn or perfect the skills needed for your fly-fishing journey. Beginners will learn about the skills and equipment needed to become a fly fisherman. Intermediates will review those skills. Then both groups will get the chance to put their skills to the test in local ponds, lakes or rivers with expert guides to lead. Course fee of $700 ($650 early enrollment, before March 31) - includes a supplemental charge for equipment.

A Taste of Taos | Dr. Carol Moder, Ann & Burns Hargis Professor at OSU and Doel Reed Center Director

Experience the diverse tastes of Taos and Northern New Mexico. This class will include hands-on cooking, as well as field trips to local growers and wineries. Specific details coming soon.

Mabel Dodge Luhan & Company: Why Taos Became a National and International Focal Point for Artists, Writers and Social Reformers in the 20th Century | Lois Rudnick

This four-day course will examine in some depth why a small town of 3,000, in a remote part of the United States, became a “city on a hill” for hundreds of writers, artists and social reformers, from around the nation and Europe, who came to visit or stay in Taos at the behest of the cultural entrepreneur and notorious modern woman, Mabel Dodge Luhan (1879-1962). We will read and discuss the essays (and art work) in the book, Mabel Dodge Luhan & Company: American Moderns and the West. And we will explore the experiences and work produced by some of the most significant of the modern painters, dance choreographers, poets, fiction writers and reformers who were part of her circle.

The class will include four field trips that will be privately guided and intended to provide students with rich experiential learning that will complement and enhance the reading and discussion. The field trips will include The Harwood Museum of Art, Taos Pueblo, The D. H. Lawrence Ranch and the Mabel Dodge Luhan House.

Sacred Place: Experiencing Hispano New Mexico | Spencer R. Herrera, Ph.D.

Levi Romero, the New Mexico Centennial Poet Laureate, defines a sacred place as where two or more gather in the name of community. For this leisure learning class we will be creating sacred spaces through our collective girthing centered on the arts. Through our presentations and class work, students will learn about Hispano New Mexico identity and also explore their own personal identities and learn what they have in common. There will be five sessions with different but connecting themes that will guide the class.

Exploring Watermedia: Creating Art in the Taos Landscape | Sara Schneckloth, Artist and Associate Professor at the University of South Carolina

Whether you’re an experienced watercolorist or haven’t picked up a brush since childhood, this workshop enhances participants’ comfort and skill in a range of water-based drawing and painting techniques. The rich and varied landscapes, skies, and cultures of Taos combine to create the perfect environment in which to discover new ways to create original artwork that reflects the colors, forms, and flavors of New Mexico. We will explore traditional and experimental approaches to watercolor, inks, gouache, and natural washes created from hand-ground New Mexican pigments. The goal of the four-day course is for participants to come away with a heightened sense of water media technique and drawing skill, personal inspiration, and a body of original art works unique to their time in Taos.

Jewelry Making in Taos | Chris Ramsay, Professor, OSU Department of Art, Graphic Design and Art History

This course requires no previous jewelry making experience and will be taught on the grounds of Oklahoma State University’s Doel Reed Center in Taos, New Mexico. Students will create unique one-of-a-kind silver jewelry with a distinctly southwestern style based upon a field trip to view the historic Millicent Rogers Museum jewelry collection. During the course we will visit a local gem and mineral shop where students will select a stone, created by a local lapidary artist, to incorporate into a simple wearable piece. In the course students will learn to silver solder, create prong and bezel set stones, and develop both traditional & foundational metalworking skills.

For further information on courses, logistics or opportunities to teach courses, contact:

Carol Moder | carol.moder@okstate.edu | 405.612.8295
Hollye Goddard | hollyesue@cox.net | 602.465.1644
Visit Facebook.com/DoelReed or contact doelreedcenter@okstate.edu to learn more!

We are excited to welcome two New Mexico-based creatives to join the ranks of Smelser-Vallion Visiting Artists and Jim and Linda Burke Visiting Scholars.

Brian Fleetwood is an interdisciplinary jewelry artist, currently living in northern New Mexico, who uses material and technical experimentation to create three-dimensional organic forms. Supported by an endowed gift from the late Jim Vallion, Brian is the seventh Smelser-Vallion Visiting Artist to work at the Doel Reed Center.

Tyler Mills is a multidisciplinary writer, visual artist and assistant professor of English at New Mexico Highlands University. A Santa Fe resident, she connects the rich cultural traditions of the region with her work as a writer and teacher. Tyler is the latest Jim and Linda Burke Visiting Scholar to come to the Doel Reed Center.

Learn more about their impressive work below:

Brian Fleetwood:

Brian uses his work to explore parallels between the way ideas and living organisms grow, spread and evolve. He pulls from traditional stories that emphasize the intimate connection between all living things, past experience working in biology, and a personal interest in the connection between mind and body.

Brian holds an MFA in Craft and Material Studies from Virginia Commonwealth University and is currently assistant professor in Studio Art at the Institute of American Indian Arts.

As the 2019 Smelser-Vallion Visiting Artist, Brian is scheduled to speak at the Hardwood Museum of Art in Taos at 4 p.m. July 18.

Tyler Mills:

Tyler holds a Ph.D. in creative writing from University of Illinois-Chicago and is the author of two books of poetry. Her recently published book, Hawk Parable, was the winner of the 2017 Akron Poetry Prize. Her poems have appeared in The New Yorker, Poetry, the Kenyon Review, and the New England Review. She is currently writing a collection of lyric essays titled Afterimage, which includes selections that won the Copper Nickel's Editor's Prize in Prose and have been published in The Rumpus, Poetry, AGNI and elsewhere.

As the 2019 Jim and Linda Burke Visiting Scholar, she will present her talk, "Creative Landscapes of New Mexico's Atomic Age: A Discussion of Artifacts, Archives and Lyric Essays in Tyler Mills' Afterimage Project" at 4 p.m. May 30 at the Harwood Museum of Art in Taos.

Promoting outdoor creativity:

We have nearly reached our $75,000 fundraising goal for the highly anticipated ramada! The outdoor pavilion and gathering space will beautifully frame the spectacular and panoramic views of Taos and allow students to create their art outdoors.

Anyone familiar with the direct New Mexico sunshine and the late afternoon showers understands the need for a covered outdoor space designed to extend the use of the studio for artists and create an outdoor classroom for students immersed in the spectacular landscape.

Construction on the project will begin this summer, but funding is still needed! Anyone wanting to contribute to the ramada should contact Deb Engle at 405-385-5600 or dengle@OSUgiving.com.

Interested in attending a 2019 Leisure Learning Course? Enrollment is open through June 22.

Take a look at these wonderful learning opportunities!

2019 Classes:

Flyfishing — Beginning and Intermediate Marc Harrell, Veteran Angler (Course fee of $700)

Drawing Canyon, Sage and Sky Sara Schneckloth, Artist and Associate Professor at the University of South Carolina

Hollywood’s Southwest Dr. Jeff Menne, Associate Professor of English at OSU

Contemporary New Mexico Cooking Dr. Carol Moder, Ann & Burns Hargis Professor at OSU and Doel Reed Center Director

Nuclear Bomb and the Land of Enchantment Ed Walkiewicz, Professor Emeritus of English at OSU

New Mexico Native Plant Ecology Sylvia Rains Dennis, Botanist and Restoration Ecologist and Educator for Wildlandance and Yampa Restoration

Click here to enroll today!

Explore your creative side in the changing colors of Northern New Mexico. The Doel Reed Center for the Arts presents art-oriented workshops which offer participants an opportunity to learn and practice an artistic endeavor. Course instructors are actively engaged in the arts.

Classes meet Thursday, Friday and Saturday. Most courses will meet at the Doel Reed Center for the Arts in Taos, New Mexico.

The Art of Metal Work:

with Lisa Regan

Interested in learning how to use metal as an artistic medium? This workshop will cover the basic use of a plasma torch in the design and fabrication of metal art pieces. Students will create their own project, based on either the culture or scenery of Taos. There will be field trips to local galleries and parks to explore possible inspirations.

Lisa Regan is a self-taught metal sculptor, founder and resident artist at Garden Deva Sculpture Company in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

The Adventurous Eye — Photographing
the New Mexico Landscape:

with Jennifer Lynch

Learn to view the beautiful fall New Mexico landscape with a photographic eye. Explore and photograph natural and historic sites, including Santa Barbara Canyon, the Church of San Jose de Gracia in Las Trampas, Nuestra Señora del Rosario Church Historic Site in Truchas, Mesa Prieta Petroglyph Project, and the Puye cliff dwellings at Santa Clara Pueblo. Then choose your best images, learn basic editing tools and print a scrapbook from your New Mexico adventure. A camera is the only requirement, but a smartphone camera is plenty!

Jennifer Lynch has over 30 years professional experience in the field of Fine Art with a specialization in Fine Art Printmaking. She is a Master Printmaker and the owner of a fine art Printmaking Studio, Lynch Pin Press Inc.

Chester Doel Reed:

We all know Doel Reed as the aquatint master who taught art and mentored students at Oklahoma A&M College. But before that, he was an architect’s apprentice and sergeant in the 47th Infantry Regiment, sketching maps along his tour in France during World War I.

[Click here](STATE Link) to read more about Doel Reed’s life.

The Doel Reed Center for the Arts remembers Jim Vallion, a true renaissance man who had a fire for life and a passion for the arts. Mr. Vallion was known as many things throughout his life: an OSU alumnus, legendary restaurateur and a successful entrepreneur, to name a few. To the Doel Reed Center for the Arts, he was a magnanimous influencer who led by doing.

Mr. Vallion fervently supported the renovation of the Doel Reed Center, located in Taos, New Mexico, and was instrumental to the project’s ongoing success.

“He loved OSU so much,” said Maggie Barrett, Mr. Vallion’s sister, caretaker and best friend. “He loved the Doel Reed Center and the friends he made there, too. He met Martha Reed before she passed away and really believed in what Oklahoma State was doing there.”

When Ms. Barrett began driving her brother to Taos from Oklahoma City, she too grew a deep love for the Doel Reed Center for the Arts. They both physically worked to restore the property, helped raise money for improvements and invested in the vision of the Doel Reed Center for the Arts.

In 2010, Mr. Vallion funded the Smelser Vallion Visiting Artist program, and well-known Western painter Sonya Terpening was the first to hold the prestigious position. Each year since then, visiting artists have created masterpieces while studying at the Doel Reed Center in the summer. They’d later share their knowledge during workshops and lectures in Stillwater, honoring OSU’s land-grant mission.

"Jim Vallion was one of those rare souls whose enthusiasm and generosity could move an endeavor to unimaginable heights. His deep personal commitment to the Doel Reed Center for the Arts - through his encouraging presence, endowed scholarships, the Smelser Vallion Visiting Artist fund, and multiple gifts to fill immediate needs - has greatly enriched the lives of students in Taos and in Stillwater. We all owe him a great debt of thanks. He will be much missed."
– Carol Moder

Smelser Vallion Visiting Artists

• 2018 Mauricio Cortes Ortega
• 2017 Beverly Acha
• 2016 Megan Singleton
• 2015 Sara Schneckloth
• 2014 Scott Kolbo
• 2013 & 2012 Sonya Terpening

In 2013, the Doel Reed Center celebrated the dedication of the Vallion Gathering Place, a courtyard that has become a central component to leisure learning courses each summer. Maggie’s Garden, named in honor of Ms. Barrett, was added to the property in 2014.

“It’s such an honor to tell people about the Vallion Gathering Place and Maggie’s Garden, how it started and what it means to me. It meant the world to my brother."
– Maggie Barrett

One of Mr. Vallion’s last gifts to the Taos, New Mexico, center was to help fund the creation of a ramada, an outdoor pavilion and gathering space. The idea for the feature came about after Megan Singleton, a visiting artist specializing in papermaking, had to continuously move her work to avoid afternoon rain showers.

Once fully funded, the ramada will provide future visiting artists and students shelter from the weather and forever symbolize Mr. Vallion’s appreciation for art. Anyone wanting to honor Mr. Vallion is encouraged to contribute by calling Deb Engle at 405-385-5600 or emailing dengle@OSUgiving.com.

For years, many friends and alumni have taken advantage of the leisure learning courses offered at the majestic and historic Doel Reed Center for the Arts. It’s truly a unique experience with each year bringing a wide array of course offerings. We talked to sisters and OSU alumni, Phyllis Hudecki and Jody Simpson, to present these three reasons you should consider joining us next summer in Taos for Leisure Learning Courses.

1. It’s not your momma’s summer art camp: When Phyllis and Jody told their families they were attending the course From Plant to Paper at the Doel Reed Center for the Arts, their children joked that they were attending an adult summer art camp. Phyllis had attended the year previous and knew this to be far from the truth. To combat the jest, she and Jody threatened to make their families artwork from popsicle sticks before heading to Taos.

While there, the sisters learned how to make paper by hand using local New Mexico plant fibers. Former Smelser-Vallion visiting artist Megan Singleton taught the course and even brought grass clippings from her St. Louis home to incorporate.

“You can literally make paper out of anything. It was really interesting” Jody said. “You almost feel like you need to have an idea of skill or craft of art before attending. But it’s strictly leisure learning. You don’t have to have any background or expertise.”

“I don’t look at things the same,” Phyllis added. “I find myself looking at plants and thinking to myself, ‘That would make an interesting embellishment on a piece of paper.’”

The next set of Leisure Learning courses are scheduled from July 22 through July 26, 2019, and covers topics ranging from fly-fishing, Southwest cuisine, the Southwest’s influence on Hollywood and much more. View the complete list of courses and reserve your spot today!

2. You'll find kindred spirits: Like Phyllis and Jody, many of the course participants rent homes and stay together even if they don’t know their housemates well. While days are spent at the Reed property or out and about in town, evenings are for shared meals and conversation.

“It’s good comradery. I was impressed with the different backgrounds of people,” Phyllis said. “For me, it’s a combination of a vacation, learning and really quality time with each other.”

“It was amazing the things we had in common even though we all came from different backgrounds and different career fields,” Jody said. “It was very easy to have conversations. Some of it was about our times at OSU, but it went deeper than that. I will look forward to seeing them again!”

3. You'll leave with a broader perspective of art: For more than a century, Taos has been an arts mecca where the famous Taos Society of Artists and other visionaries like Georgia O’Keefe, Ansel Adams, Doel Reed and many more have sought inspiration and comradery. You’ll understand why once you’re tucked away in the mountains.

Phyllis has a Doel Reed aquatint Before the Storm that depicts the view from the center’s property. She stumbled upon it at a gallery after attending her first leisure learning course in 2017 and had to have it.

“Not only did Doel Reed create these masterpieces, but OSU has taken his property and created opportunities for people to experience all different kinds of art,” she said. “We are very proud that OSU has developed this facility. It’s an outstanding aspect of the university. It adds another dimension to the emphasis on visual and performing arts that’s happening at OSU.”

Both Jody and Phyllis said they will return to Taos in the future to attend courses.

“There’s something about the mountains and the whole New Mexico scene that’s enticing and relaxing,” Jody said. “It’s the perfect setting to do creative work. It is so inspiring.”

Smelser Vallion Visiting Artist Mauricio Cortes Ortega conducts artist talk and workshop on Nov. 15 and 16 | Reserve your spot today!

Artist Talk

6 p.m., Thursday, Nov. 15 | OSU Museum of Art

2018 Smelser-Vallion Visiting Artist Mauricio Cortes Ortega will present an artist talk in Stillwater at the OSU Museum of Art.

This presentation will focus on Mauricio's interests and art, including work done during his recent residency as the Smelser Vallion Visiting Artist at the Doel Reed Center for the Arts in Taos, New Mexico.

He will explore histories of particular objects and the contrasting realities about the history of making — often related to harsh narratives veiled by folklore and romanticism. Subjects include Mexican sarape textiles, colonial votive crowns, piñatas, balloons, and silversmithing in Mexico to a name a few. As a visual artist, Mauricio makes paintings and sculptures that pair seemingly distant ideas and create visuals that provide insight into the history of a particular object and process.

Artist Workshop

Monoprinting with oil sticks | 10 a.m., Friday, Nov. 16 | Prairie Arts Center

Visiting artist Mauricio Cortes Ortega will lead a workshop and demonstration over monoprinting — a form of printmaking that has lines or images that can only be made once.

The artist will highlight the many techniques and approaches to monoprinting — such as oil sticks. He will also discuss the virtues of the monoprinting process and how it is akin to painting and drawing but involves an intermediary step that can be liberating and surprising. Two different approaches will be explored: participants will make one print without an intaglio press and one using the press. Space is limited, please RSVP.

Be sure to visit DRCA.OKstate.edu for updates on programming and Stillwater-based lectures.

2019 Doel Reed Center for the Arts Leisure Learning Courses
Summer Courses — July 22-26 | Taos, New Mexico

Oklahoma State University’s Doel Reed Center for the Arts invites you to participate next summer in an educational experience in beautiful Taos, New Mexico. These classes, designed by expert instructors for inquiring adults, invite you to explore the art, culture and recreational experiences that multicultural Northern New Mexico offers. Classes may combine lectures, discussion, hands-on activities and visits to local sites. Classes will meet Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday. To enroll now, visit drca.okstate.edu.

Early enrollment course cost: $550 (Deadline is March 31) | Standard course fee after March 31: $600 (Final deadline is June 22)

Beginning & Intermediate Fly-fishing | Marc Harrell
Learn or perfect the skills needed for your fly-fishing journey. Beginners will learn about the skills and equipment needed to become a fly fisherman. Intermediates will review those skills. Then both groups will get the chance to put their skills to the test in local ponds, lakes or rivers with expert guides to lead.

Course fee of $700 ($650 early enrollment, before March 31) - includes a supplemental charge for equipment.

Contemporary New Mexico Cooking | Carol Moder
Chile, corn, chocolate. In this hands-on cooking class, we will experience the ways that contemporary New Mexico cooks transform their culinary creations by incorporating traditional New Mexico ingredients into contemporary dishes.

Drawing Canyon, Sage & Sky | Sara Schneckloth
Where do we find inspiration? How do we turn that inspiration into original artwork? In this workshop you will learn traditional methods to handcraft your own work in charcoal, pastels and watercolor paint, and use these tools to create drawings that reflect the colors, forms, and flavors of Taos, New Mexico.

Hollywood's Southwest | Jeff Menne
Hollywood has been attracted to the New Mexico landscape since the dawn of cinema, largely as an authentic setting for the Western. In this course, we will consider the value that New Mexico has held for Hollywood by viewing clips, full-length movies, and television shows filmed here, as well as by visiting actual locations.

The Nuclear Bomb & the Land of Enchantment | Ed Walkiewicz
Using the story of the Manhattan Project and Neil’s Bohr’s principle of complementarity, this course will compare Western, technological approaches to the natural world with alternative perspectives that also have shaped New Mexico’s history and cultures, including Native American, “counterculture,” and “green” world views. We will visit Los Alamos, the Earthship community, and other relevant area sites.

New Mexico Native Plant Ecology | Sylvia Rains Dennis
The natural biodiversity of the Taos region offers a stunning array of native plants, their pollinators, and wildlife throughout mountain and plateau/canyon life zones. We will begin our discovery of botany with a basic overview of natural habitats and sustainability, then explore field locations that emphasize our unique mosaic of wildflowers, forests, bunchgrass/steppe and wetland/riparian vegetation. We will discuss what we find while learning basic plant identification techniques and creating site descriptions, keeping in mind the example of people living sustainably within these landscapes for many centuries.

For further information on courses, logistics or opportunities to teach courses, contact:

Carol Moder | carol.moder@okstate.edu | 405-612-8295
Hollye Goddard | hollyesue@cox.net | 602-465-1644

Save the Date - Fall Leisure Learning Courses: Fall into the Arts courses will be offered September 26 – 28, 2019.

2018 Doel Reed Center for the Arts Leisure Learning Classes
Fall Courses — October 4-6 | Taos, New Mexico

Oklahoma State University’s Doel Reed Center for the Arts invites you to participate this fall in an educational experience in beautiful Taos, New Mexico. These classes, designed by expert instructors for inquiring adults, invite you to explore the art, culture and recreational experiences that multicultural Northern New Mexico offers. Classes may combine lectures, discussion, hands-on activities and visits to local sites. To enroll now, visit drca.okstate.edu.

Course cost: $400

The Art of Metal Work: Interested in learning how to use metal as an artistic medium? This workshop will cover the basic use of a plasma torch in the design and fabrication of metal art pieces, as well as the safety precautions necessary in these practices. After the initial lessons, students will create their own project, based on either the culture or scenery of Taos. There will be field trips to local galleries and parks to explore possible inspirations.

About the Instructor: Lisa Regan is a self-taught metal sculptor, and the owner of Garden Deva Sculpture Company in Tulsa, Oklahoma. In addition to creating pieces over her own, Lisa has been teaching metalwork classes in her studio for over ten years. Lisa has taught dozens of students from all over the country the techniques and art behind metal sculpting and fabricating. Lisa uses a plasma torch to cut designs in various types of metal. She bends, rolls, and welds the metal to produce art with the goal of connecting people to playful, fun energy, following the belief that a joyous spirit leads to a happier life.

Plein Air Printing: Join us for a three-day printmaking workshop at the lovely Doel Reed Center for the Arts where we will take our easels outside to get inspiration from the beautiful Taos scenery. Using Doel Reed’s studio as our base, we will create monoprints, study color theory and discuss art history. All skill levels welcome.

About the Instructor: Suzanne Wiggin was raised in New Orleans, Louisiana and moved to Taos, New Mexico forty years ago. Taos Valley has had a profound impact on her artistic vision. The land with its storms and clear light is the focus of her paintings and monotypes. Her education includes a Master of Fine Arts from Boston University and a Bachelor of Art Education from the University of New Mexico. Her work has been exhibited widely and is represented by Winterowd Fine Art of Santa Fe, New Mexico.

The Art of Fused Glass: Create beautiful glass pendants, bracelets, night lights and ornaments. Learn the science of glass and methods for cutting and fusing glass. Experiment with color, shape and types of glass. This is a great opportunity to create your own distinctive works.

About the Instructor: Diane Harris is from Muskogee, Oklahoma and graduated from Oklahoma State University with a BS in Computer Science in 1982 and a Master of Education with emphasis in Art History from University of Central Oklahoma in 2005. Since 2001, she has studied warm and fused glass, taught workshops for children and adults, and created innovative works of fused glass art. She has lived in Taos since 2010 and participates in Art & Fine Craft shows in Oklahoma, Texas, Arkansas, Kansas, Colorado, and New Mexico. She shows her work in Ammann Gallery in Taos.

For further information on courses, logistics or opportunities to teach courses, contact:

Carol Moder | carol.moder@okstate.edu | 405-612-8295
Hollye Goddard | hollyesue@cox.net | 602-465-1644

When Bob Parks was considering his estate plan, he realized his entire life was tied to Oklahoma State University and the art of printmaking. That made it an easy decision to designate the bulk of his estate to benefit the Doel Reed Center for the Arts. OSU's interdisciplinary living learning laboratory and museum incorporates the former Taos, New Mexico, homestead of legendary printmaker Doel Reed as well as his wife, Jane, and daughter, Martha.

"After my wife, Cynthia, passed away in 2014, I thought, 'What better way to help OSU than to set up some kind of bequest,'" Parks said. "It's really a very simple story. As a student, I was just kind of your average spoiled, middle-class brat from Oklahoma City. I wasn't serious about school and flunked out the first year. I decided eventually I needed to be a good student and make something of myself. OSU gave me that chance."

Parks earned both an undergraduate education and 34 years of faculty salary at OSU, and said he could never fully repay the university for the difference it has made in his life.

"Some of the most important people in my life were people at OSU — instructors all over campus. I had lots of mentors, not the least of which was J. Jay McVicker. I would never have become a printmaker if it weren't for him, so I'm very happy that I will be able to help OSU."

Jay McVicker was a two-time OSU graduate, earning both a 1940 bachelor's and 1941 master's degree under the tutelage of Doel Reed. McVicker succeeded Reed as head of the Art Department in 1959, serving in that capacity until his own retirement in 1977. Parks said he studied printmaking under McVicker "practically all the time I was at OSU" until his 1969 completion of a bachelor of fine arts.

That was also the year that he met Doel Reed.

"Jay said, 'If you're going to be a printmaker, you need to go meet Doel Reed,'" Parks said. "So when I had the occasion to be in Taos, I dropped by and spent an hour or two with him. He was just as described by Jay — charming and irascible and still working, still very active in the studio. I was in the studio with him and we had a drink on the porch." Parks admits that he was not confident in his ability to continue on to graduate school.

"I had the attitude that I really couldn't compete out there," Parks said. "I applied to 10 graduate schools, thinking I wouldn't get into any of them, and as an Okie I wouldn't be able to compete if I did get in. It turned out I was accepted to seven of the 10, with offers of funding and all that. I chose Tulane to study printmaking, and I found out I was better prepared and more willing to solve problems and think on my feet than a lot of the other people in my class who had come from places considered more prestigious. So OSU prepared me very well."

But after completing a 1971 master of fine arts with an emphasis in intaglio printmaking, Parks discovered "there were no art jobs in this country. I picked up the phone one day and it was Jay McVicker, and he said he had a job if I wanted to teach. I was on the faculty until I retired in 2007."

It was there that he met his future wife, who was also an art professor.

His role on the art faculty is what led to him being an early supporter of the Reed Center, as well as building a friendship with Martha Reed. She was an OSU graduate who lived in Taos for 57 years before she passed in 2010. She had contacted her alma mater in 2005 with the idea of using her estate to honor her father's legacy. That is what became the Reed Center.

"During those first few years, it seemed like I was out there all the time," Parks said. "I really got to know Martha and really grew to love her. She was difficult and charming and irascible and all the things I remembered about Doel. She was very sweet to me and appreciated what we were trying to do for her. She was also very kind and open when we took students out there in the early days."

Thanks to the generosity of Jim Vallion and Jim and Linda Burke, each summer the Doel Reed Center hosts a visiting artist and visiting scholar to study, create and teach in Taos. This element helps diversify offerings at the Reed Center, elevates our prominence among practicing artists and scholars and helps increase the impact of programming both in Taos and in Stillwater, where the artist and scholar give lectures and applicable workshops.

We are eager to introduce this year’s Smelser-Vallion Visiting Artist and Jim and Linda Burke Visiting Scholar.

Mauricio Cortes Ortega:

Artist and educator Mauricio Cortes Ortega is the 2018 Smelser-Vallion Visiting Artist. Cortes, who moved from northern Mexico to the U.S. in the 90s, reflects his interest in re-contextualizing materials and imagery from stateside nationalism and Mexican folklore in order to explore the complexity of identity.

“I am excited to learn of Taos’ complex history of immigration and to see in person the various physical examples of change and transformation in Pueblo culture after the arrival of Spanish settlers in the 16th and 17th century. As a Mexican-American artist the subject of immigration and the clashing of cultures is both fascinating and complex. I look forward to better understand how these dark chapters in our American history have also led to the production of fascinating visual arts and architecture.”

Cortes received his B.F.A. from The Cooper Union and his M.F.A. in Painting and Printmaking from Yale University School of Art in 2016. He was a guest speaker at Contemporary Crossroads II Yale Alumni Conference in Miami (2017) and the recipient of the Rema Hort Mann Foundation Artist Community Grant NYC (2017), the Schell Center for International Human Rights Travel Fellowship of Yale Law School (2015), the Jóvenes Creadores Mexican National Council for Culture and Arts Painting Fellowship (2013), the Menschel Travel Fellowship Award and the Ellen Battell Stoeckel Painting Fellowship (2011).

Cortes currently lives and works in New York City. As the 2018 Smelser-Vallion Visiting Artist, Cortes will present his talk, “Rainbow Mantle,” at 4 p.m. on July 17 at the Harwood Museum of Art in Taos, New Mexico. To view some of his work, visit mauriciocortes.myportfolio.com.

David Dunaway:

David Dunaway, the 2018 Jim and Linda Burke Visiting Scholar, has been teaching creative writing courses at the University of New Mexico since receiving the first Ph.D. in American Studies at the University of California Berkeley in 1981. He is known internationally, teaching in Denmark and England and as a Fulbright Scholar in Colombia and Kenya.

In addition, Dunaway is the author and editor of 10 books, an oral historian and a biographer in print, radio and podcast. His award-winning national radio documentary series, such as “Writing the Southwest, Aldous Huxley’s Brave New Worlds,” and “Across The Tracks: A Route 66 Story,” have been broadcast on National Public Radio and internationally on hundreds of stations.

Perhaps his most well-known work, “How Can I Keep From Singing? The Ballad of Pete Seeger,” was published by McGraw Hill in 1981 and republished by Villard/ Random House in 2008. Dunaway currently resides in Albuquerque, New Mexico where, among his many other endeavors, he is a DJ for KUNM-FM.

As the 2018 Jim and Linda Burke Visiting Scholar, Dunaway and local author John Nichols will present “Writing & Filming the Southwest,” 4 p.m. July 10 at the Harwood Museum of Art in Taos, New Mexico.

Be sure to visit DRCA.OKstate.edu for updates on programming and Stillwater-based lectures.

The Doel Reed Center for the Arts is fortunate to have a group of dedicated and passionate donors serve on its Advisory Committee. The group, which convenes annually in Stillwater and Taos, works to provide OSU and the Reed Center’s leadership counsel and support to ensure the success of programming.

We are happy to welcome to the Committee our newest members: Mac and Pam Rosser and Charlie and Anne Scott. Thank you for your service!

Doel Reed Center for the Arts Advisory Committee:

• Judi Baker
• Maggie Barrett
• Brenda Beard
• Annie Brown
• James Burke
• Linda Burke
• Terri Cooper
• Hollye Goddard
• Joy Hadwiger
• Ann Hargis
• Burns Hargis
• Diane Harris
• Smith Holt
• Nigel Jones
• Jim Parker
• Linda Parker
• Ted Schupbach
• Lela Sullivan
• Jim Vallion
• Kent Young
• Jeanette Young

Carol Moder, Ann & Burns Hargis Professor & Director, Doel Reed Center for the Arts & Professor, TESL/ Linguistics Program, Department of English, Oklahoma State University

Deb Engle, Senior Consultant, Oklahoma State University Foundation

If you are interested in joining the Advisory Committee or making a gift to the Doel Reed Center for the Arts, please contact:
Deb Engle | dengle@osugiving.com | 405-385-5600

The Doel Reed Center for the Arts enjoys spectacular and distant panoramic views of the valley below and the mountains beyond. As the property is utilized by more and more classes, a new teaching and event space has developed as a high priority need. The addition of a covered outdoor patio would allow students to create their art outdoors or engage in lively conversations about a range of topics from literature to the landscape. Anyone familiar with the direct New Mexico sunshine and the late afternoon showers understands the need for a covered outdoor space designed to extend the use of the studio for artists and create an outdoor classroom for students immersed in the spectacular landscape.

The leadership of the Doel Reed Center has adopted this project and is working to secure the funding needed to complete the construction by May 2018 so that summer classes might utilize the new space.

“We are going with a ‘ghost studio’ concept, so it’s the same size as the Reed Studio and the columns are located to reflect the locations of windows and doors,” said Nigel Jones, OSU’s university architect. “This will be perfect for outdoor classes, workshops and others gatherings that need more space than the studio can provide. It will also offer protection from the sun and rain for all sorts of classes – fly fishing, sketching, painting, fabric dying and papermaking, to name just a few examples.”

If you are interested in supporting this project, including potentially naming the patio, please contact Deb Engle at dengle@osugiving.com or (405) 385-5600.

Ian C. Williams received a Doel Reed Center for the Arts scholarship and participated in the “Tourism & Taos: Rhetorical Invention” class last summer. One of the benefits of that class is a hallmark of the college experience: developing intellectual curiosity and dealing with controversial subjects such as differing views of historic figures. He wrote the following to thank everyone who made his participation in this course possible, and agreed to let us share it as a reminder of the opportunities the Reed Center creates for dozens of students each year.

Ian C. Williams Ian C. Williams says he learned a lot during his time at the Doel Reed Center for the Arts.

First of all, I would like to extend my deepest, sincerest thanks for providing the opportunity to visit Taos and learn about the local culture, critically examining tourism and tourism rhetorics, and applying this wealth of new knowledge and understanding to my own practice as a poet. I have been pursuing a master of fine arts in poetry at OSU for just over a year, and since attending the school, I have grown so much as a writer, a scholar and a human being. When I was working on my undergraduate degree, I was never able to afford a travel-based course, despite always wanting to. When I heard that OSU had strong connections and provided the opportunity to study in Taos, I was excited. Your help has made it possible for me to have this experience. From the deepest recesses of my heart, I am eternally grateful for your generosity, support and belief in education.

I attended Dr. Ron Brooks’ “Tourism & Taos: Rhetorical Invention” course. Since I was accepted into graduate school, I have developed a strong interest in composition and rhetoric, and intend to study them further in my career alongside poetry. I have found these two interests complement each other, and this course has certainly strengthened their relationship. We were asked to “look past the periphery” of tourism locations, which is a skill essential to poetry’s craft. This course definitely increased my understanding of this skill, and I think about poetry differently now.

Beautiful landscapes The area’s beautiful views are another benefit of a student experience in Taos.

This idea of looking past the periphery focuses the most around monuments and museums, especially how these locations promote specific historical narratives and suppress others. One narrative that stands out surrounds the figure of Juan de Oñate, a Spanish conquistador who massacred indigenous tribes in the Taos region. As a display of his power, after the massacre, Oñate ordered all the indigenous men over the age of 25 to have a foot severed. Oñate was later banished for his war crimes. Despite these heinous crimes, there are multiple monuments honoring Oñate as a hero, warrior and adventurer. One of these statues stands outside of Taos, and another stands outside the El Paso (Texas) International Airport. I am so interested in how this man is elevated as a hero, despite being convicted of war crimes. I think it’s important to examine these narratives and counter narratives, because it forces us to identify the power struggles and stakeholders in countless social and political issues.

During the two weeks I spent in Taos, I learned so much and developed valuable relationships with mentors and peers. I want to reiterate how thankful I am for your generosity and support—I could not have gone on this trip, had these experiences and developed these skills without the scholarship I received. I will never forget any of it.

If you are interested in making a gift to support scholarships at the Doel Reed Center for the Arts, contact Deb Engle at dengle@osugiving.com or (405) 385-5600.

Bill and Roberta Armstrong knew little about the Doel Reed Center for the Arts before they received an email two years ago promoting classes for lifelong learners. When the Stillwater-based alumni saw one course was about author and Oklahoman Tony Hillerman, they quickly enrolled.

Roberta Armstrong They spent a fun-filled week in July 2015 studying “Shamus and Shaman: Tony Hillerman’s Dance Hall of the Dead and A Thief of Time,” taught by Brewster Fitz, OSU professor emeritus.

They had so much fun that they returned last July for “New Mexico Farm to Table,” taught by Barbara Forsberg, owner of nearby Brett House Catering. They were among the record 31 participants in four courses that session. They spent time in Forsberg’s commercial kitchen honing their cooking skills, visiting with a local farmer at his property, utilizing a wood-fire oven in a beautiful local home, and cooking dishes such as paella and pizza.

During the Hillerman course, they enjoyed reading the books – as Bill had already done numerous times – and then watching a film adaptation and highlighting the differences between the versions. There was also a visit to a Santa Fe museum, where a local expert spoke to them about Hillerman and his work.

“During class, we sat outside under a huge willow tree and had great discussions,” Roberta said, adding they learned more about who Doel Reed was and bought in to the purpose of the Doel Reed Center for the Arts.

“The courses are so well-done,” Roberta said. “People ask which course was better, and I just can’t say. Everyone we talked to said they wanted to take another one. You have such a good time in these great class sessions, and you also have plenty of time to go do other things while you’re out there.”

Bill enjoyed visiting beautiful northern New Mexico and the sense of camaraderie they built with other lifelong learners.

“We spent the Wednesday we were out of class floating down the Rio Grande. It was peaceful and fun. You have a lot of opportunities like that,” he said. “And then there are some events in the evening when you get together with everyone from all of the classes. It’s a great trip.”

In fact, the Armstrongs plan to make the Doel Reed Center for the Arts a more regular destination.

“There are so many classes we want to take,” Roberta said. “We both are interested in another cooking class, and another Hillerman class, and a bunch of others that have been offered.”

Carol Moder, director of the Doel Reed Center for the Arts, said the Armstrongs’ experience is typical for those who have taken the lifelong learner courses.

“We have found good instructors, both among local experts and OSU faculty,” Moder said. “Some participants like more academic-based content, and others like activity-based classes where they get out in the environment in Taos. We are scheduling options for both this summer, and people who would like to participate need to enroll soon to save a spot.”

Course enrollment is currently open with six offerings for July 24-28. Each course is $600, or $550 for those enrolling before March 31.

Ecology and Visual Landscape of Northern New Mexico, taught by Dave Engle and Marty Avrett, professor emeriti

Art & Literature in New Mexico Post 1940, taught by Ed Walkiewicz, professor emeritus

Taos Photography & Solar Printmaking Workshop, taught by Jennifer Lynch, master Printmaker

Fly Fishing (Beginning and Intermediate), taught by Marc Harrell, Taos native

New Mexico Food & Culture, taught by Carol Moder, director, Doel Reed Center for the Arts

Fashion Studies, taught by Mary Ruppert-Stroescu, assistant professor

For more information or to enroll, click here.

The leadership of the Doel Reed Center for the Arts is also considering offering a long-weekend leisure-learning opportunity in late September or early October. If you are interested, contact Moder at carol.moder@okstate.edu or (405) 612-8295.

The Doel Reed Center for the Arts has made some impressive strides over the past year. Summer sessions featured a record number of students and scholarships, and for the first time, most courses were held on the historic property.

More than 35 students participated, most of whom received one of the 30 scholarships available.

“The students’ response to the classes has been amazing,” said Carol Moder, director of the Doel Reed Center for the Arts. “We had three classes from the College of Arts and Sciences, and one from Human Sciences. We are getting increased interest across campus from various colleges who want to plan courses in Taos.”

Topics included principles of nature for design inspiration, the science behind art, water ethics and literature.

Four experts studied in Taos as well, supported by funds for visiting artists, scholars and OSU faculty.

This year launched the Hargis Fellows program, which supports OSU professors who study independently in Taos. Cristina Cruz González, associate professor of art history, and Andy Mattern, photography and digital media professor, were the inaugural honorees.

González, who studies late colonial New Spain and the art of the northern frontier, said the setting was perfect.

“The residency provided much-needed time and space in a majestic environment conducive to focused writing and intellectual inspiration,” she said. “Coinciding with important exhibitions in Taos and Santa Fe was an added bonus.”

Mattern used a handmade cardboard camera to create unique prints with half-hour exposures. A time-lapse video of the process is viewable at andymattern.com/window.

His images pay homage to the primary inventors of photography who were tethered to their studios and forced to photograph out the window due to long exposure times. He said innovators toiled away for years in dark rooms before finding solutions to problems.

“Later, of course photography would become smaller and portable, but in the beginning it was stationary, cumbersome, and uncertain,” Mattern said. “It is this final aspect, uncertainty, that I sought to encounter by building my own camera at the Doel Reed Center for the Arts and gazing out the window to produce my own ‘first photographs.’”

Both González and Mattern have created proposals for new Reed Center courses in their areas of expertise.

“One of the goals of the Hargis Fellows program is to get more OSU faculty out to Taos,” Moder said. “This affords them a way to take from the rich environment of New Mexico and fold it into their work and courses, and bring it back to the Reed Center to benefit the students or lifelong learners as well.”

The Smelser-Vallion Visiting Artist and the Linda and Jim Burke Visiting Scholar also helped teach summer courses.

Paper Samples Students created paper from pulp using plants they gathered at the Doel Reed Center for the Arts.

Artist Megan Singleton came from St. Louis to work with students on the science of papermaking. She uses hand papermaking as a main component of her mixed-media installations, and had students create their own paper.

“They collected samples from the property and cooked them down into pulp in the fire pit at the Vallion Gathering Place,” Moder said. “They really enjoyed that.”

The OSU community will have the opportunity to participate in a similar experience when Singleton visits the OSU Museum of Art this winter. Singleton is scheduled to speak at the museum from 5 to 7 p.m. Feb. 23 and will host a papermaking workshop the following day.

Also scheduled to appear in Stillwater is the visiting scholar, Lois Rudnick, who co-taught “New Mexico Regionalism and Modernism” with former Reed Center director Ed Walkiewicz this summer.

Rudnick, the retired former chair of the American Studies Department at the University of Massachusetts Boston, focuses on modern American history, culture and literature, especially the writers and artists in Taos and Santa Fe.

Rudnick will speak from 5 to 7 p.m. April 6 at the OSU Museum of Art. The topic is “A Creator of Creators: How Mabel Dodge Luhan Catalyzed Southwest Modernism.”

“The Reed Center has attracted impressive visiting experts,” Moder said. “It is delightful to see their work extend from Taos to Stillwater, fulfilling the holistic vision Martha Reed had when she gifted her family’s property to OSU.”

Cristina González, Hargis Fellow Cristina González Hargis Fellow

Andy Mattern, Hargis Fellow Andy Mattern Hargis Fellow

Lois Rudnick, Linda and Jim Burke Visiting Scholar in Literature Lois Rudnick Visiting Scholar

Megan Singleton Megan Singleton Visiting Artist

A brief selection of recent news and highlights from the Doel Reed Center for the Arts.

Friends of the Doel Reed Center launched Last summer, we launched Friends of the Doel Reed Center, an annual giving program to support scholarships and funding for both programs and the historic property. We invite you to partner with us to maintain Martha Reed’s vision of creating an education center that includes many academic disciplines.

Gifts to the Program Fund support classes for OSU students and lifelong learners as well as outreach programming. The Property Fund provides perpetual support for the impressive indoor and outdoor spaces at the Center, which are used by faculty, visiting scholars and students each year. Scholarships offer students a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to experience this living laboratory, immersing them in a unique culture and landscape.

The Doel Reed Center for the Arts is celebrating 10 years of success thanks to strong leadership and generous donors, such as the Friends of the Doel Reed Center. Thanks in large part to their support, we expect the next decade to bring even greater success.

You can help OSU continue to attract visiting artists and scholars to produce original works, teach seminars and collaborate with creative minds of any age or academic discipline. By investing in the Center, you assist in developing innovative educational opportunities available to all, and significantly advancing OSU.

For more information, please visit drca.okstate.edu or Facebook.com/DoelReed.

Fundraising for outdoor plaza underway The leadership of the Doel Reed Center for the Arts is raising $100,000 to add an outdoor plaza on the northwest side of Doel Reed’s studio. It will complement Casa Cooper’s covered portal, which is used extensively for classes. This plaza will be ideal for classes, events and work by visiting artists. Its importance was abundantly clear last July, which is the rainy season. The weather caused havoc for Megan Singleton, the Smelser-Vallion Visiting Artist, who was trying to work with paper outside.

“She would set up tables and then have to move back inside,” said Carol Moder, director of the Doel Reed Center for the Arts. “This will really improve our ability to use the property in many ways. It will allow us to enjoy the air and the view without having to worry about the rain or the sun.”

This is a donor naming opportunity. The funding will cover construction, landscaping and furnishings. It will also add a potential sight for a sculpture.

If you are interested in supporting this project, contact Deb Engle at dengle@osugiving.com or (405) 385-5600.

Developing scholars visit property For the fourth year in a row, the Doel Reed Center for the Arts was the site of the Scholar Development Writers’ Workshop for students applying for prestigious national scholarships. On January 10-12, nine of OSU’s best young scholars wrote, critiqued and revised application materials under the guidance of Jessica Roark, director of the Office of Scholar Development, and Keith Garbutt, dean of the Honors College.

“The Doel Reed Center for the Arts offers students an ideal location for the deep reflection and careful articulation demanded by the competitive scholarship application process,” Roark said. “The workshop allows top OSU students to share their work with their peers in a supportive and collaborative environment and includes time to explore the unique culture of Taos.”

Roxanne Beason participated in the class “The Science of Art” last July at the Doel Reed Center for the Arts. Beason enjoyed her experience so much that she wrote the following letter to thank the donors who made her experience possible. She agreed to let us share it as a reminder of the opportunities the Reed Center’s supporters create for dozens of students every year.

Dear donors,

Studying the scientific processes and materiality of art and painting in Taos was nothing short of incredible. The breathtaking mountain views and rich culture and history make New Mexico one of the most enchanting and inspiring places to learn about the process of artmaking. Not only did the Frank and Louise Nash Endowed Scholarship allow me to formally learn about the molecular compounds that make up different paints, pigments and art mediums, but I also had the opportunity to learn how to create art materials using local plants and resources.

Emphasizing painting, Smith Holt began the first week by teaching us how to build a painting from scratch, utilizing the techniques of the old masters while simultaneously learning the scientific reasoning and chemical makeup of each step. We did things such as preparing the stretcher and canvas, heating rabbit-skin glue and adding marble dust to gesso the canvas in preparation for the pigments that we had prepared through mixing organic compounds, using filtration and grinding the pigment for various medium usages. Visiting artist Megan Singleton spent a day showing us the scientific processes and breakdown of materials in the art of papermaking. From start to finish, she guided us and we made paper from the plants that we gathered—which gave us something handcrafted and reminiscent of our experience here in Taos.

After a weekend exploring Taos, the second week of class offered more time to examine paint mediums and materials. Professor Holt wanted us to experiment with painting on different surfaces using mediums such as encaustic, casein, egg tempura, acrylic and oil. His colleague and art conservator, Victoria Montana Ryan, gave us a presentation on art conservation and the process of her own scientific analysis. Then we investigated older paintings she brought for damage and flaws in materials. One afternoon, we walked to the studio of a local Santero, Gustavo Victor Goler. Knowing the importance of age-old traditions and materiality in the creation of his beautiful imagery of Catholic saints, Goler was kind enough to take us through his artistic practices as a traditional wood carver and Santero. On our final day of class, we toured the amazing Earthships with the English class. Later, we had a lecture from Professor Cristina Gonzales about Spanish colonial art, New Mexican art history and painted fakes and forgeries.

Thank you for this opportunity to take the Science of Art course. I had a wonderful time in that beautiful place and I will never look at a painting the same way again. I hope this class is offered again in the future so that others can learn some basics of art conservation.

Sincerely, Roxanne Beason Tulsa, OK Art History, December 2016

If you are interested in making a gift to support scholarships at the Doel Reed Center for the Arts, contact Deb Engle at dengle@osugiving.com or (405) 385-5600.