| In 1919, Myrtle Gilbert was selected
as the first president of the Salem Arts League, now the Salem
Art Association. The league's objective was "to help Salem
become a community with an intelligent appreciation of the beautiful,
that beauty which manifests itself in many ways, as in architecture,
pictorial and plastic art, music, literature, photography, and
landscape gardening." Members of the league believed "that
starting with a few branches or sections, dealing with certain
manifestations of beauty, it was possible for others to be added
as interest and opportunity increases."
That first year the Salem Arts League held art displays,
lectures and classes in art appreciation, literary appreciation,
writing, and outdoor and interior design. The Weaver's Guild
and the Writer's Club, organizations still serving Salem artists,
grew out of those early years.
Myrtle Gilbert taught art appreciation and interior design
at the league. She was also a musician; she taught and sang
at various affairs. In 1931 she became the first president
of the Salem Chamber Music Society and later presided at the
Salem McDowell Club. She was also involved in the Drama League.
Born in Minnesota and educated at the University of Michigan,
Myrtle Wilcox came to Halsey, Oregon as a teacher. She married
Romeo Monro Gilbert, an artist, in 1911. He brought her to
Salem where his Frame Shop became the center of artistic life
and notable exhibits.
The Gilberts were friends of other artists, following and
encouraging their careers. They took young people in need
of education into their home. Myrtle Gilbert was known as
the first follower of the Baha'i faith in Marion County. She
died in 1970 at the age of 88, but her many local contributions
to the appreciation of the arts are a living Salem legacy.
Bibliography:
This profile is directly quoted from the following publication
edited by David Duniway:
"Myrtle Gilbert" Panegyric II. Mission Mill Museum.
Jan.13, 1973.
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