Barbara Larimore exhibition opens at Olney Heritage Museum

The Olney Heritage Museum hosts well-known and beloved Olney artist Barbara Larimore on Dec. 8 for an exhibition centering on her vibrant European paintings and photography. The Museum will launch the exhibition, “Experiencing Europe,” with a reception that is open to the public from 12:00 p.m.-5:30 p.m. at 213 E. Main St. The exhibition of 22 paintings and six photographs from her travels will run through December.

All paintings are offered for sale with the proceeds to

Photo by Will Sadler benefit Keep Olney Beautiful. Donations to Keep Olney Beautiful will also be accepted at the reception, and are tax deductible.

Mrs. Larimore “is a painter in perpetual motion,” the Wichita Falls Times Record News wrote about her work. “In the fifth grade, when my teacher put some irises in a glass and had us draw and color what we saw, I was ‘hooked’ on art,” she said. “Although the opportunity to study art seriously didn’t actually become possible until 1979. Along the way, I have been privileged to study with some of the finest master teachers, and consider the pursuit of art to be a life’s journey.”

Mrs. Larimore lives in Olney, where she still loves the creating of art. Working in oils and pastels, her varied subjects come from painting ‘plein air’ and from photos collected from her trips to places such as France, Israel, England, Mexico, Canada, Italy, Spain and through many states. She works in an impressionistic style, loves the effect of light, and is greatly inspired by the French and American Impressionists. Her works may be found in private collections across the United States.

“The seeds for the exhibition were sown years ago with my collection of various paintings from my European travels. As the idea of a show began to develop, I thought it would be unique to do a European themed show.”

Her paintings include a richly colored depiction of a flower-bedecked farmhouse in France, a moody seashore in St. Ives, a quiet harbor cove in Switzerland, street scenes from Italy, luscious oranges on a tree in Israel, and she even slipped in a couple of Texas scenes.

“I love Italy, having been there three times,” she said. “I think Italy is the favorite as far as international travel goes. Other than that it’s the Texas Hill Country in the spring.”

After the Dec. 8 reception, the paintings will continue to be available for viewing and for sale in December during the Museum’s regular hours, Monday-Friday, 8 a.m.-5 p.m. at 213 E. Main St. in Olney.