About the Artist
I grew up in Norwich, Connecticut. My parents, Sidney and Dorothy Beller, were both very creative people. I was very fortunate that they sent me every Saturday morning through my elementary school years to the art school at Norwich Free Academy, our local high school. I enjoyed classes in painting and drawing, pottery and sculpture there. I have four wonderful sisters, who have been great friends through the years.
I attended the University of Connecticut as an art major, and met my husband, Joe Pompano, there. We lived in Massachusetts for many years, and I received my B.A. and teaching certification in Elementary Education and Art Education from the University of Massachusetts. In 1981, we moved to Virginia.
We have raised three lovely and talented daughters; Rachel, Rebecca, and Laura, and our family has expanded over the years to include three wonderful sons-in-law, and two grandchildren, Jasper and Kaia. Lady Periwinkle, our little Cavalier, completes our family. In 2023, we moved to Barboursville, Virginia, to live near our daughters in Charlottesville. I have always loved the Blue Ridge Mountains, which surround us, and I feel deeply thankful to be living here amidst such beauty.
I have worn many hats over the years, having worked as an elementary school teacher, art teacher, portrait artist, scrimshaw artist, and landscape painter in oils and pastels. I have also done illustration work for 22 book covers for Thorndike Press, and greeting cards for Sunrise Publications. For thirty years, I taught piano lessons and art lessons in my home, the Harvest Moon Studio, to children and adults.
I am very proud to have been given the opportunity to write a book on woodburning for Fox Chapel Publishing. Woodburning Project and Pattern Treasury was published in October, 2011, and is available for sale at Amazon, Barnes and Noble and Fox Chapel. This book is still selling very well after over 13 years, and has been translated into Chinese for the Asian market! I have also written many woodburning project articles for Pyrography magazine and other magazines; such as Pure Inspiration, and Creative Woodworks and Crafts, and I taught woodburning classes for five years at the John C. Campbell Folk School in Brasstown, NC. I feel very gratified knowing that thousands of people have spent peaceful, creative hours working on my designs and projects, especially during the pandemic.
I no longer do woodburning work, and I have transitioned back to my first love, which is painting and drawing.
Since 2012, I have been working on writing and illustrating children's books. I enjoy painting in watercolor and gouache, as well as drawing with graphite pencils and pen and ink. Many of my piano students have been models in my paintings! I am a member of the Society of Children's Book Writers and Illustrators (SCBWI), and have attended their conferences and workshops.
I love to paint wildlife, children, landscapes of rural scenes, and nature studies of flowers, gardens, animals and birds. I also enjoy doing Poem Paintings that illuminate poetry, weaving images together that express the meaning of the words. Besides painting, I also enjoy walks with my dog, gardening, reading, sewing, playing the piano, singing in the choir, cooking, and spending time with my family and friends. My husband and I enjoy contemplative meditation and are members of a Centering Prayer group.