The EACC Gallery presents Delta Woman’s Joy, an exhibit by artist Cheryl Moore.  The exhibit will run through Friday, February 2nd.  The public is invited to meet the artist in the Gallery on Friday, January 19th at 6:30 p.m. before the Dublin Irish Dance performance in the EACC Fine Arts Center.

Artist Cheryl Moore of Elaine, Arkansas is a retired art teacher who is now developing her own artwork. Living in east central Arkansas between the Mississippi and White Rivers has provided inspiration for her various forms of artwork including landscape, portrait, still life, and abstract painting.  As a high school art teacher, Moore encouraged her students to do their best and create their own unique pieces of art, but she never attempted to express her own art. In 1998, she encouraged her art students to create designs for the King Biscuit Blues Festival poster in the youth division contest, and Moore joined them to submit a design in the adult entry level.  Moore won the contest and her design was chosen as the King Biscuit Blues Festival poster.  “Winning the King Biscuit Blues Festival design contest was a turning point in my creative life, and so began my artistic journey,” said Moore.

A native of Phillips County, artist Cheryl Moore graduated from Barton High School and attended Arkansas State University, where she studied art and graduated with a Bachelor of Science in Education of Art in 1975.  Throughout her career, Moore taught junior and senior high art in the Holly Grove and Elaine School Districts, worked at Great Rivers Educational Cooperative, and taught K-6th grade art at Barton Elementary School, where she retired from in 2014. 

In the Delta Woman’s Joy exhibit, artist Cheryl Moore communicates and portrays through various forms of artwork how she, an Arkansas woman, perceives her Delta roots and country environment.  “Each experience of creative exploring moves me forward and takes me in directions I never dreamed possible, and each day I find that I have grown spiritually as well as artistically through photography, writing, drawing and painting,” said Moore.  “The quiet beauty of the Mississippi Delta can’t help but be a valuable part of my daily inward growth, which has brought into existence the artist that I am today. Through my art and actions, I hope that I can encourage others to find their creative path, wherever they are planted on this earth,” she added. 

Moore’s artwork has been featured in numerous exhibits, shows, and collections throughout the Delta region and the state of Arkansas including the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences (UAMS) cancer wing in Little Rock, the Delta Cultural Center and other locations in Helena, the King Biscuit Blues Festival, the Grand Prairie Center in Stuttgart, the Hot Springs Fine Arts Center, and more. In addition, Moore’s designs were selected as the official King Biscuit Blues Festival posters in 1998, 2007, and 2016. 

The EACC Gallery is located at 1700 Newcastle Road in Forrest City.  Daily hours for the Gallery are Monday-Thursday from 10:00 a.m. until 4:00 p.m. and Fridays from 10:00 a.m. until 12:00 p.m., or as scheduled for special group tours. There is no charge for admission.  For more information, call 870-633-4480, ext. 352.