COEUR d’ALENE — When Diane Barron retired from her career as an art teacher, she expected a vacation.

Instead, she got the fight of her life.

Barron spent 2019 battling stage-three ovarian cancer.

Just as she was preparing to venture into the world after her final chemotherapy session in January 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic hit.

It was during that period of turmoil that Barron found both the motivation and the time to complete a project she’d considered for years: compiling her paintings into a book.

“It literally seemed now or never,” she said.

Though friends and family knew she painted, and some even owned a piece or two, Barron said they didn’t realize the extent of her work until it was bundled together in a large-format paperback.

“It’s not a bad amount, considering I am a very lazy painter,” she said.

Barron, who paints with acrylics, also wrote original poems to complement the art.

A self-described “picky” and detail-oriented painter, her work ranges from the surreal to the photorealistic. She said she always sits on the floor to paint, even when working on canvases that are 3 feet long.

Though her subject matter is diverse, running the gamut from city scenes to portraits and beyond, Barron said she frequently comes back to traditional imagery — vacant houses and abandoned barns.

In Barron’s eyes, the structures are remnants of life. Painting them is her way of preserving them.

“I don’t see them as somber, but softly beautiful,” she said. “Many of them aren’t standing anymore. The lilac bush or daffodils continue to grow.”

Barron graduated with honors from Michigan State University in 1970 and later earned a master’s degree in education from the University of Idaho.

Though she’s displayed her paintings at a few shows in Portland and Spokane over the years, she said the greatest show of all was sharing her work with countless high school students.

She recalled her final year as an art teacher, when one of her paintings was displayed in the school’s staff room.

Titled “Renewal,” the surrealistic piece depicts a bride and groom standing atop a rocky hill at night. Above them, the sky is full of stars. Below, a rose blooms from the parched ground.

In Barron’s work, oversized flowers symbolize continuation.

The office bookkeeper, who had recently lost a grandchild to cancer, noticed the painting.

“She told me that looking at it brought her peace,” Barron said. “That touched me as nothing else would.”

Barron knows firsthand how art can interact with grief.

Her most heartfelt work is “Holding on to Beauty,” which she painted as her son, Colin, was dying of bulbar ALS.

The 10 x 20-inch painting depicts a figure holding a wilting pink flower.

Colin passed away in 2013 at age 42.

“I wanted to keep him whole and here,” she said. “I didn’t even realize what I was doing, but it was my way of blessing his departure.”

Though the paintings and poems in her book are personal, Barron said she hopes they remain open to interpretation. Together, they offer a glimpse into a life lived fully.

“I have given this book to many people, as a thank you for their prayers,” Barron said. “God has given me the gift of time.”

Barron’s book, titled “Paintings and Poems,” is available on Amazon. She hopes to make copies available through local retailers.

Info: www.dianebarronart.com

SIDEBAR

After He Leaves

By Diane Barron

My house is full of empty beds;

long corridors lead from my head.

My house has another empty chair;

you are not there---you are not there.

You've gone ahead---you've gone ahead;

you've flown away to heaven's stead;

My house is full of empty chairs;

I purchase more to hold my cares.

I have your toys in a closet deep;

and memories I'll always keep.

Uncomplaining throughout “no cures”;

you showed us how a man endures.

The dew has turned from diamonds to tears;

washed away your discomfort and fears.

You had to go---you had to go;

the morning sun does tell me so.

I'm not alone---you're not alone;

for in my heart you have a home.

Love to Son Colin.

Taken at age 42 by bulbar ALS.