Nevada County Picayune and Gurdon Times Newspaper Archive

Former Rosston Resident Enjoys Her Paintings At Nursing Home

Mrs. Wynona Dillard values her paintings. She rarely ever sells them. They remind her of her younger years when she could begin and finish a piece in two days or less.

No longer able to paint because of bad eyesight, she contents herself to gaze on the paintings that she has done over the past few decades.

Dillard used to teach young ladies in her home how to paint and a group of her girlfriends would get together for a painting group.

"I remember this one girl, she was so messy. Got paint everywhere," reminisces Mrs. Dillard, a former resident of Rosston. "But when I taught the technique of painting on glass, she didn't get paint anywhere. She was very neat."

Due to diabetes, Dillard has been a resident of the Ouachita County Convalenscent Center since October 5, 1995. She has three paintings of butterflies and a rose hanging in her room. When the center was due for inspection, some of the nurses decided it would be nice to have small display of Dillard's paintings, according to the center's Maxine Slaughter.

"So far we've changed this display out twice," said her husband, B.C. Dillard, former mayor of Rosston. "We'll change it out one more time before I take them home."

"We've kept the display up because we just wanted to honor her," said Slaughter.

When asked if she sold her paintings, she said, "These are my treasures. I keep them for me."

One of the reasons Dillard doesn't paint anymore is because she cannot distinguish the different colors.

Dillard has two sons, three grandchildren and one great grandchild. She taught her children to paint, but said they "gave it up for more important things."

Dillard liked to use shadows when she painted and her favorite time of day was the morning because "the light wasn't artificial." She would paint off-and-on during the day for about 2 1/2 hours. She also liked to paint cold things on hot days. "You'd be amazed at how much cooler you felt."

Some of Dillard's paintings are of blue jays, Nevada School's mascot. She has 50 or more different paintings that she has done.

When asked if she preferred the beginning of a piece or finishing it she replied that she liked the finishing.

"The part I liked best was signing my name down at the bottom."

by Mattie Watson, Camden News