MARY BALDASANO / Special to the PVT Betty Ross shows off, at bottom, her favorite painting of a large barrel cactus. Advertisement

While Betty Ross' artwork gives her local recognition as well as recognition from other art outlets, none is more important than the blue ribbon she won at the Pahrump Fall Festival in September for her painting "Fall."

Recently, the Pahrump Art Council hosted a display of her work at the Pahrump Museum.

Detail, detail, detail is the real impact of her efforts. One cannot only see but almost feel the pine needles of a branch, the roughness of a road and the leaves on a tree. One can look at a seascape and see the water create white caps and watch a large ship move through the waves.

While many create fine artwork, Ross' ability to put "feel a vision" in her paintings is uncanny.

She keeps her work to land and seascapes. "I find it just too difficult to obtain a true likeness of the person," said Ross.

She also keeps her work in oil as she finds watercolor to be too "free" for her style. Texture is gained from the canvas and does well to accent the subject matter.

A unique aspect of her artistry is that no matter the view, you will never see telephone poles, houses, or the like in her work. Ross said, "Telephone poles and other manmade structures take away from the beauty of the landscape. I want the beauty of nature, not manmade additions."

This 82-year-old lady has been completing her work for more than 30 years. Even though she spent a long career as an employee of the federal government, she still found time for her art.

Her profession gave her opportunities to take in the beauty of other countries such as Turkey and led to many seascapes.

The oil of a large barrel cactus was also therapy after the loss of her mother and is her favorite of them all.

Ross said, "I think of my mother every time I look at it. It's a very special work. I would never part with it for any reason. I also took classes to refine my work after the loss of my son."

Ross came to Pahrump in 1999 and immediately became enamored of the skies and mountains of the area. Her art is not for sale.