President

Jane Copeland
I have been involved in creative endeavors all my life including various crafts,  glass blowing and ceramics, and as a child, a most memorable Christmas present was a Jon Gnagy Learn To Draw set. But I didn't start painting until 2012, when a friend introduced me to pastels. I have delighted in demonstrations and workshops by favorite pastel artists, most notably Margaret Dyer, who awakened in me a fascination with the human figure. I love capturing gesture, and telling a story. 

Debbie Been

My interest in art began, as with many, in childhood and was reinforced through exhibits in elementary and high school.  I was nine or ten when I traveled with my mother to New Orleans for studio sessions with a pastel artist.  I watched and drew while he worked on his portrait of her.  After the sessions he looked at my drawings and encouraged her to buy me a set of pastels, which she did.  That was my introduction to and the beginning of my love for pastels.  I attended LSU and USL (now UL-Lafayette) and graduated with a BFA-Studio with a double major in painting and photography. While I have primarily painted in oils, I have returned to pastels periodically over the years.  I love their brilliance and immediacy.  I joined CTPS to learn more about this beautiful medium .

Barbara Chenault

Art has always been my “north star,” always teasing me to create! So having taken time from raising my family and after, I’ve always managed some art fun…. watercolor, oils, and now, pastels. Having lived in very paintable locations like Bermuda, California, Colorado and Ohio, I have had amazing inspiration. I have learned my craft by taking workshops with nationally acclaimed artists, and lots of hard work. I paint for the sheer joy it brings me, and then, I am rewarded by the happiness it brings to others. View my artwork at: www.barbarachenault.com

Jan Frazier
Art has been the driving force of my life since I was a child. I began my formal training at the University of Kentucky where I graduated with a Bachelor's Degree in Art Education. A short while later I moved to Austin, Texas, where I began pursuing art as a full-time professioin. Read more: http://www.janfrazierart.com

Mary Olivera

 I loved art in school as a child until I was banned from taking class by a nasty teacher because my painting was too symmetrical. In college I bravely decided to take an art therapy course to get past my earlier traumatic experience with art.  The class rekindled my love of art using watercolor as my medium. My Aunt inspired me to try pastels and I loved capturing the beauty of the landscape in Santa Fe, my former home. Early on, I took a pastel workshop by a well-known pastel artist, feeling confident that the one week workshop would provide me with all the knowledge I would need to masterfully paint with pastels...twelve years later, I am still mastering this wonderful and challenging medium.

Julia Fletcher

 I can’t remember not drawing or painting in some manner. My debut was on my bed's headboard with a very sharp pencil. When I was in the third grade my Mom placed me in oil painting lessons. To fuel my passion she said. I graduated from the University of Texas-Austin with a BFA in Studio Art. Initially, I went the pottery direction. Life interrupts and I was an educator for 28  years. Upon retirement I tried, and loved, pastels. I love painting Texas; other States too, but always Texas.  

 Board positions are elected for one term, by member vote at the April Membership Meeting. Nominations may be made from the floor prior to the vote, by the membership. The newly elected officers will assume their role in September. Meet our current board in the "Our Current Board" section below.

As a Section 501 (c)(3) non-profit organization, we observe a set of bylaws by which our organization will conduct its affairs.   

CTPS is an arts organization and, as such, will occasionally engage businesses with which to partner or to obtain goods and services. For that reason CTPS observes a conflict of interest policy. 

On occasion, CTPS may be gifted goods and services. To follow consistent and ethical policies regarding acceptance or non-acceptance of those gifts, the organization has a "Gift Acceptance Policy". 

CTPS will experience changes in Board positions and any committees necessary to run the organization. Due to that constant change, there is a need for consistent policies on retention of documentation. 

Please view the most frequently asked questions regarding our organization in the  FAQs section on the homepage of this website.