Ouachita Stories

Visiting her alma mater Dec. 11 to dedicate the Rosemary Gossett Adams Department of Art and Design, the guest of honor told Ouachita students and faculty, “What was mine, I give to you. I only ask that you use it and enjoy it.”

Mrs. Adams, a 1963 Ouachita graduate with a major in art, said that during her years on campus, she went from being “little miss nobody in particular” to discovering she was special. “Do you know why?” she asked. “Because everybody at Ouachita is special.

“In 1963, I left here with several goals,” she added. “One of my big goals was to make this world a better place, to leave a little something behind so that people would know that I had been here and that I had walked this way. Today, by jove, I think I’ve got it.”

In addition to her Bachelor of Arts degree from Ouachita, Mrs. Adams holds a Master of Arts degree from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary and an associate’s degree in interior design from Louisville Tech. She and her husband, Glen, live in Louisville, Ky.

Mrs. Adams’ gift funded the renovation and expansion project for the benefit of Ouachita’s Art and Design program. Primary renovation details include a new front façade and entrance to Moses-Provine Hall which houses the Art and Design program; creating gallery spaces to display artists’ works; upgrading classroom, studio and office space; and adding an elevator to the facility.

“If you’re a student, I want you do to three things,” Mrs. Adams said. “I want you to come in here and learn and learn and learn.

“When you leave this place,” she told the students, “I want you to take this specialness and that learning and go out and make the world a better place.”

Surrounded by students, faculty, trustees and other guests in the facility’s new Rosemary Gossett Adams Gallery, she told the dedication crowd, “This is my legacy. … God bless all of you and God bless Ouachita.”

Affirming that Ouachita “is a place about people, about our students, about those who teach them,” Ouachita President Rex Horne said, “Today, in large part, is about Rosemary Adams. … She’s devoted to Ouachita, she’s excited about Ouachita. She has invested a part of herself into this place that will be a lasting legacy to Rosemary and to the students and the faculty who come to this particular place.”

Dr. Scott Holsclaw, dean of the School of Fine Arts, noted that “Mrs. Adams has offered us a true gift not only in this present moment but with a vision for the future. In her generosity and love for Ouachita, she has presented the Department of Art and Design with a definitive home.”

Emphasizing that the project “goes beyond the bricks and mortar of this building to the very heart of the educational process,” he added, “These gallery additions and the upgraded spaces provide a haven of freedom, safety and encouragement for young artists creating and exploring their artistic talents.”

Donnie Copeland, chair of the Rosemary Gossett Adams Department of Art and Design, told Mrs. Adams, “What a wonderful thing you have done for Ouachita. You’ve certainly dressed us up – this is beautiful and it’s functional.

“It is our responsibility now as students and faculty to respond to your gift, to honor your gift and we will do so with our work,” he said. “We will design and produce and paint and build and write and we will create. I think that is the best and most fitting thank you that we can offer.”

Katelyn Smith, a junior art education major and president of the OBU Art Club, spoke on behalf of Art and Design students. Expressing appreciation for such additions as the elevator, safety features and gallery spaces, she said, “For art students, this building really does become our second home. … We truly appreciate the impact all these new additions have on our studies and our lives as art majors.”

The new gallery space already has featured two art exhibits, one by John Deering, chief editorial cartoonist and illustrator at the Arkansas Democrat-Gazette, and the other featuring works donated by Dr. Loyde Hudson, a physician from Fayetteville. Among the paintings and sculptures donated by Dr. Hudson are works by renowned 19^th century American artist Thomas Moran and German-American artist Albert Bierstadt.

For more information about the Rosemary Adams Department of Art and Design, contact Dr. Scott Holsclaw at [email protected] or 870-245-5561.

 

By Trennis Henderson, OBU Vice President for Communications // Photos by Tyler Rosenthal