Loretta Pruett
Donna, born and raised in Southern California, moved to Arizona in 2003. She has always enjoyed creating something special from items that others might just toss away. During her teaching career, she designed many special gifts and decor for each of the holidays. She taught students from infancy to college age and directed early childhood centers in California, Iowa, Texas, and Arizona. Her artistic talent and love for music led her to direct children’s choirs in her churches.
After retiring from a 45-year career in early childhood education, Donna was looking for a hobby to fill her time. Though she has never had formal art education, she had the desire to learn. So, she attended some acrylic painting classes and thus began her canvas art adventures. Donna explained, “My artwork is an expression of my experiences in life.” Later, she took a colored pencil class, which inspired her passion for colored pencil drawing.
One of her favorite vacation spots is Yosemite National Park, and her first landscape drawing called Nature’s Fantasy is of the Yosemite Valley. Blessed with a friend who has given her many wildlife photographs, her journey in art follows a path that is never ending, where one will never know what waits around the next corner to know or see and discover. Donna shared, “I have an appreciation for the imagery and beauty of nature in all its different settings. In growing up, I often heard the saying that ‘nature is the artwork of God,’ and the Yosemite Valley was always magical each time we visited.”
Seizing the opportunity to experiment with different techniques and learn new things, Donna decided to move forward to “fur and feathers” and completed some wild animal drawings. Next came pet pictures and the award-winning Sitting Pretty cat.
Please visit Donna’s artwork displayed at the Creative Art Center and the Tuscany Falls and Eagle’s Nest clubhouses.