By Brenna Wiegand
Kathryn Cramer’s art was a picture of her life. Inspired, she thoughtfully carved out its design, adjusting or defining as her soul directed. She intentionally chiseled away those things opposed to love, peace and community.
She made her imprint on her world during the 41 years she spent here, leaving behind a sense of peace and hope, the encouragement to dream and an indelible reflection of what it is to love.
A year after her death, her friends and family gather to celebrate Cramer’s life and its impact.
This August, Lunaria Gallery in Silverton hosts “A Retrospective of Artwork by Kathryn W. Cramer – Artist, Teacher, Mother, Friend,” a show of her woodcuts and linoleum cuts, drawings and pictures.
Alongside the work of the friend they still mourn is the artwork of those participating in the Silverton Fine Arts Festival, Aug. 20-21 in Silverton’s Coolidge-McClaine Park.
In the summer of 2009, Cramer was diagnosed with a rare form of cancer. She died Oct. 29, 2010.
“Kathryn and I met 10 years ago when I moved to Silverton,” Lunaria artist Julie Huisman said. “She was a member of Lunaria and I knew she was special from the beginning. She had a kind of peace and calm, amidst her busy schedule that make me think, ‘I would love to be her friend.’ We grew closer as the years went on and shared two booth spaces at the Silverton Fine Arts Festival for a number of years.”
They would often say, “I wish we could spend more time together,” Huisman said. Huisman was one of the people who drove Cramer to Portland for her appointments.
“I have always thought that those drives benefited me more than her,” Huisman said. “We became very close and were able to spend the time we had wished – bittersweet, but very precious.”
Among Cramer’s passions were teaching art and English as a Second Language at Mark Twain Middle School, creating art and being part of the community of fellow artists at Lunaria Gallery – and being part of the Raks Sarama belly dancing troupe. Cramer knew the value of enjoying family and friends, unafraid to share the range of emotions while keeping a soft heart.
What fellow artist Ann Altman noticed about Cramer is that she seemed to have the goal of making the world a better place. When Cramer was in the midst of her illness, Altman described her friend as a “bright and shining light that illuminates and inspires all of us. She is serious and funny, careful and carefree, these days both fragile and strong – I guess whatever it is, her emotions are right there, no guesswork. But even when she is mad, she is kind and/or she will see something funny in a situation.”
At that time, Cramer said her cancer taught her to appreciate everything about life, including the gift of hopeful, positive loved ones. These included her husband Tim Cramer, who reveled with Kathryn in the bringing up of their daughters Bonnie and Gwen, born while the couple lived on a farm in Vermont.
“Wherever she lived, she opened her heart to those around her,” Tim noticed. “…her compassion, love and acceptance continued right to the very cliff-edge of her life.”
Altman said Kathryn’s positive attitude came through – and remains – in her art.
“She was a good friend, a dedicated artist and a wonderful person,” Altman said. “She was humble in that she used to say she was ‘just a printmaker.’ I don’t even know what that meant.”
