Where are they now?

Keeping up with Terri Priest

By Pamela Reponen

Secluded within Worcester's historic Heywood Building is the studio of local artist and former Holy Cross professor, Terri Priest. Located on Winter Street in the Kelly Square section of the city, the red-brick factory, built in the late 19th century, had once been a thriving center for the manufacture of boots and shoes. A one-step stone walk-up through heavy double doors leads into the first-floor landing where a vintage elevator makes the ascent to the upper levels. The studio, positioned at the end of a circuitous corridor, is a spacious, brightly lit area with white walls and hardwood floors. Priest, who has worked in this space for about two years, is preparing a collection of oil paintings for exhibition. 

Retirement has enabled the Worcester artist to pursue her creative endeavors full time. Drawing on her years of experience in the visual arts field, Priest continues to explore on canvas innovations in form and design. "The current body of work was started by my constant search for beauty and color, by my love of art history, and by my admiration for painters who have preceded me," she says. 

The new paintings reflect the influence of the 17th-century Dutch master, Jan Vermeer. Intrigued by his attention to detail and love of precisionism, she had sought out his work in various museum collections. From this study, she developed an interest in the women portrayed in his paintings. Captivated by their enigmatic expressions and obscurity, she conceived the idea of bringing them into the 20th century by juxtaposing them on canvas with the works of contemporary painters. "I'm telling stories, creating a whole new life for the Vermeer women," she says. According to Priest, one of her objectives is to take the women out of the claustrophobic setting of a small painting and introduce them to a much larger space. 

On one canvas, the subject is Vermeer's "Young Woman with a Water Pitcher." Absent, however, are the window frame, water jug and the world map found in the original painting. Instead, Priest has surrounded the woman with the works of the 20th-century painter, Roy Lichtenstein: in one hand she is holding his painting, "Wallpaper with Blue Floor," and, in the other, a vase that he created; one of his paintings also hangs on the wall behind her, taking the place of the map found in the original. Priest notes that while Vermeer's painting measures 9" x 14", she is working on a 42" x 72" canvas. 

In another painting, Priest places Vermeer's "Woman in Blue Reading a Letter" in the foreground of Edward Hopper's 1957 painting, "Western Motel." In the Hopper work, a woman is seated on a bed next to a window; an automobile is parked outside. The juxtaposition of the two women creates a bond between them transcending time and cultural differences. In discussing this work, Priest says she is concerned with selecting images that are icons in America-her intent is to use images that the general public can recognize easily. 

Describing her creative process, Priest says she has spent considerable time in the presence of the Vermeer women, sometimes having imaginary conversations with them, asking the question, "What would you do in the 20th century?" At the same time, she thinks about artists whose works she had admired and studied, looking for a connection between the images in order to formulate a narrative. 

Priest's painting of Vermeer's "Girl with a Pearl Earring" took approximately five months to complete. Working on a 40" x 90"canvas, she conceived the idea of placing Pablo Picasso's "Girl Before a Mirror" to the left of the portrait; on the right side is a picture frame containing bands of color. Priest says that while Vermeer painted the girl inside a picture frame, she always felt the young woman belonged outside of it. For this reason, she placed it next to her, filling it instead with bands of color that correspond to those found in the portrait. According to Priest, the colors inside the frame represent the girl's essence which she leaves behind as she emerges from the enclosure. She also notes that their visual weight helps to balance the lines and shapes of the Picasso. 

Explaining her technical process, Priest says that, initially, she makes rough sketches in a workbook. Once the who/what issues have been resolved, she stretches the canvas and, using the method of gridding with blue chalk, plots the images on the canvas. She is then ready to begin painting. Priest says she prefers to work on the canvas stapled to the wall because she likes the resistance of the brush against this surface. Recently, she has been working on her painting of Vermeer's "A Lady Standing at a Virginal." Included on this canvas is her depiction of "Andy Mouse," a painting by the American artist, Keith Haring. 

Terri Priest taught at Holy Cross for 15 years. Hired in 1978 to fill two part-time positions in the visual arts department, she accepted a full-time position the following year when an opening became available. During her tenure at Holy Cross, she taught perspective and introductory and intermediate courses in painting and design, served on various faculty committees and chaired the department for several years. According to Priest, teaching full time involved total immersion with students during the academic year; painting and exhibiting were restricted to the summer months. In 1990, she took advantage of a special faculty proposal that enabled her to work half time during her last four years at Holy Cross. She notes that this gave her the opportunity to balance her teaching duties, professional responsibilities and family obligations effectively. 

Reminiscing about her years at the College, Priest says, "Holy Cross has been very important to me. I frequently think back to when I was a professor at the College." She remembers, in particular, several class assignments that tested her students' ingenuity and artistic skills. Challenged to build kites in design class, the students had to take into consideration the principles of aerodynamics in creating their project; they then had the opportunity to test the success of their endeavors by flying the kites one afternoon on the lawn outside of the Hart Center. Making kimonos in another course gave students the opportunity to experiment with pattern and design. Priest especially remembers the work of three students in her advanced design class, Elizabeth Cracco '89, Paula Kelleher '90 and Jennifer Horgan '90, who undertook the assignment of reconfiguring the art studio itself. Working over a period of several weeks, they succeeded in tilting the floor, creating a different angle to the walls through the use of corrugated cardboard, designing new window space and changing the location of the door. 

Priest has many special memories of her students and colleagues at Holy Cross. She says she is pleased that some of her students have kept in touch with her after leaving Holy Cross while others send her periodic updates of their activities. "I also miss the interaction with other members of the faculty," she says. "I especially enjoyed talking with colleagues who shared office space with the visual arts department on the fourth-floor corridor of Fenwick." She explains that during the last few years of her tenure at the College, the visual arts department moved into the former ROTC building which is now the Millard Arts Center. 

Discussing career options for visual arts majors, Priest recommends specializing in an area of interest such as design, graphic arts, photography or teaching, noting that a knack for computers can open up a career path. "Students have to make some choices as to the kind of art they are going to pursue," she says. Priest remembers advice she had given to a student at Holy Cross who had come to her for help in deciding on a career: Research as many organizations as possible that have a connection with the arts; study the needs of a company; and then, drawing on the expertise gained from the liberal arts experience, prepare a solution. Following her advice, the student found a niche in the visual arts field. She also notes the advantage of studying art in a liberal arts college where students, in addition to acquiring technical skills, learn how to draw on their knowledge of other disciplines to solve problems. She believes that this background is important in the development of new ideas which, she says, requires "dredging from inner resources." 

Active in the Worcester arts community for many years, Priest's involvement ranges from serving as a visiting artist, critic and lecturer at area colleges to exhibiting her works in solo, group and invitational shows. Two years ago, at an Open Studio in Worcester, she presented her work in an exhibition entitled "Fasten Your Seat Belt." In 1996, Priest took part in the Worcester area Women's Invitational held at Anna Maria College in Paxton; in 1992-93 her work was on exhibition at the Worcester Art Museum as part of "Selections from the Permanent Collection." While at Holy Cross, she participated in two faculty shows. 

Priest's contribution has also included many hours of volunteer service. A member of the board of directors of AIDS Project Worcester in the early 1990s, she organized the fund-raiser, Art for AIDS Sake; in the 1980s, she was involved in several exhibitions to raise money for Abby's House, a shelter for women in Worcester. She is currently serving as a corporator of the Worcester Art Museum. 

Concerned with the issues of civil rights and the Vietnam War movement during the 1960s, Priest joined others in the Worcester area in forming an organization called the Phoenix. "The purpose of the group was to bring speakers of different religious and political persuasions to the local area to present their views," she explains. Located in a storefront on the lower end of Main Street, the Phoenix hosted activists Dorothy Day, Stokely Carmichael, Abbie Hoffman and theologian, Harvey Cox, among others. Priest says that the Phoenix, which dissolved in 1969, made a positive contribution to the outpouring of ideas taking place during this time. 

According to Priest, she has had an interest in art since childhood, although she did consider briefly a career in law. She remembers the summer when she was 10 years old, a cousin, who was an attorney, coming to visit the family, driving a red convertible. 

"How did you get that?" she asked him. 

"I earned it," he replied. 

"At that point," she laughs, "I wanted to be a lawyer." 

Always drawing, she was intrigued early on by the story line and pictures of the comic character, Prince Valiant. After high school, Priest says, she was offered a scholarship to art school, but it was withdrawn because she was getting married. Over the years, she took many courses in art history as well as courses in literature, philosophy and psychology at Assumption College. During this time, she did many apprenticeships, including one with a sign painter-all the while painting and experimenting with new ideas on her own. Priest credits her decision to enroll in the University Without Walls to the late Iris Egan, a friend she had met through her civil rights activities. This program enabled her to apply previous academic and work experience toward the fulfillment of undergraduate degree requirements. In 1975, she received her bachelor of arts degree in fine arts from the University of Massachusetts-Amherst and, in 1977, a master's degree in fine arts. Priest taught at Framingham State College for one year before coming to Holy Cross. 

Several years ago, Priest teamed up with Allen Fletcher, chairman and treasurer of Worcester Publishing Ltd., to open the Fletcher/Priest Gallery located at 5 Pratt St. in Worcester. "The market in art was falling through when we opened the business," Priest says. Renovating the first floor of the two-family house, they set out to determine if a commercial art gallery could survive in the current climate. Open two days a week, Wednesdays and Thursdays, from noon to 6 p.m. and also by appointment, the gallery presents six shows a year by both nationally recognized and emerging artists. 

In recognition of her many contributions to the arts, Priest was the recipient of the Katharine F. Erskine Award in Arts, Humanities and Education in 1998. Describing her as "the acknowledged doyenne of the city's visual arts scene" and "an accomplished practitioner in the media of printmaking, pastels and oils," Worcester Magazine recently named her "Best Visual Artist" in its selection of "What's Best in Worcester." 

On a recent Friday morning in late August, the studio basks in light and stillness; books and art supplies are scattered on work tables, and off to one side, an easel stands empty. Filling the length of one wall are four paintings from Priest's newest collection, fitting comfortably into the space of this 28' x 40' studio. With the afternoon stretching before her, she is preparing to spend the next few hours working on her portrait of one of the Vermeer women all the while thinking about a title for the series that best captures its mood and essence. In this studio, Priest has found the place to continue her search for beauty and color in the creation of her art.