Mrs. Paratore continues to follow her love of painting and is now working on a series of portraits in oils.
SANTE FE, TX, October 22, 2024 /24-7PressRelease/ -- Gay Paratore, MEd, has been selected for inclusion in Marquis Who's Who. As in all Marquis Who's Who biographical volumes, individuals profiled are selected on the basis of current reference value. Factors such as position, noteworthy accomplishments, visibility, and prominence in a field are all taken into account during the selection process.
Mrs. Paratore is a renowned artist and educator. Her artwork and reference to many of her accomplishments can be viewed on line by searching: Gay Paratore, artist. She continues to make an impact with expertise in all painting media, including watercolors, oils, acrylics and pastels, She also excels in craftwork including ceramic pottery and sculpture, casting jewelry, weaving, cast aluminum sculpture and wooden assemblage.
Mrs. Paratore began her career as an artist in 1958 working summers in the Medical Illustration Department at the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston, Texas. She was born and raised in Galveston and her home, the Stubbs/Garrigan Cottage, is now listed with the National Register of Historic Homes. She graduated from Ursuline Academy in 1957 and earned her bachelor's degree from Sam Houston University. She majored in art, science, and education graduating in 1961 as an honor student in the top 2% of her class. Later Mrs. Paratore earned her Master's Degree in Art Education from the University of Houston. She also took several classes in educational supervision from The University of Texas while teaching at Alvin Community College. Mrs. Paratore traveled to California to five American Artist's Methods and Materials Conferences where she was able to study painting under over 75 noted professional artists. Later she went to New York City on two different trips to study painting at the National Academy of Art and the famous Art Students League.
Gay Paratore started her teaching career in 1961 with the Hitchcock Independent School District. Later she taught at Ball High where she developed their craft curriculum. She taught art for the Alvin Independent School District. Gay Paratore was selected as Art Department Head for Alvin Community College. She also taught drawing and painting at the Art Alliance Center of Clear Lake, and the Butler Longhorn Museum in League City, both in Texas. Later she taught at the Woodlawn Museum in Ellsworth, Maine and in Winter Harbor and Southwest Harbor, Maine. She has a summer home in Maine.
Gay Paratore founded the National Society of Artists in 1985 and was recently recognized at the 40th Anniversary Celebration by the membership and the Santa Fe Chamber of Commerce with a plaque commemorating her achievement.
Mrs. Paratore's civic involvement includes volunteering as a watercolor teacher for the patients at the Shrine Burn Hospital in Galveston, Texas. She also taught physically and mentally challenged adults at their living center in Texas City. She served as a school board member for the Our Lady of Lourdes School in Hitchcock for seven years. She also taught religious education to sixth graders there and was the cultural director for their youth group taking the young adults to Houston to the Miller Outdoor Theater where the students were able to view professional dramatic productions and musicals. In Santa Fe, Texas, Mrs. Paratore was the first president of the Friends of the Santa Fe Library and worked for seven years to raise money to build a better library building. In Santa Fe, she is also an active member of a Beta Sigma Phi Chapter making lifelong friends. Mrs. Paratore was selected to be a member of the Alvin Texas Delta Delta Chapter of Recognized Educators by Delta Kappa Gamma Society International.
Among the hundreds of accolades that Mrs. Paratore achieved was winning the cover design for the University of Texas Medical Branch's guide to "The Burn Survivors Journey" published in English and Spanish. Gay Paratore won the Presidents' Award three different years from the National Watercolor Society. She won the Bronze and the Gold Medal Awards from Grumbacher. Mrs. Paratore won Best of Show awards from the National Society of Artists, the Galveston Art League, Watercolor Art Society of Houston and the Art Alliance Center of Clear Lake for their final showing and many other ribbons to recognize her outstanding art work. Added to her credentials Mrs. Paratore earned signature membership in seven outstanding art societies in which you have to be selected to show three times in the Organizations National or International shows allowing the artist to put the organizations' initials after their signature on all of their paintings. These societies that elected her are: The National Watercolor Society, the National Society of Artists, the Texas Watercolor Society, the Watercolor Art Society of Houston, the San Diego Watercolor Society, the Western Federation of Watercolor Societies and the Missouri Watercolor Society. Mrs. Paratore was voted by the Galveston Art League to become a member when she was only thirteen years of age and she was recently recognized as the oldest living active member of the organization.
Mrs. Paratore attributes much of her success to her passion for sharing her knowledge with others. Her dedication to teaching has seen her students win numerous awards at the Houston Livestock and Rodeo Student Art show for thirty years and she was awarded a plaque of recognition as an outstanding teacher for the program for her student winning one of the top awards for Rodeo Art.
Mrs. Paratore continues to follow her love of painting and is now working on a series of portraits in oils which is her favorite thing to paint. But interestingly many of her top awards were given to her for her detailed watercolors of antique automobiles each of which took three months to paint, but one of her Best of Show Awards was a portrait, titled "Breakfast California Style." You can recognize this painting on the internet as the young lady is holding a white coffee mug.
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