Made by Hand
THE ART OF MUSIC Willamette’s music department serves as a muse for artist Diane Trevett.
The college courses Trevett took in botanical and scientific illustration influence the accurate renderings of natural objects found in much of her work. Above: “Horn & Morning Glory.”
Painted when Trevett was a teenager, “Piano in the Round with Clouds” (above) was her first work to incorporate a musical theme. 20
FALL 2015
A golden French horn morphs naturally into a sky-blue morning glory flower. A rose unfurls its silky petals against a cello, with a peach-colored bud stretching across the strings as if to unleash a crescendo of notes. A blend of realism and symbolism, these two paintings combine Diane Trevett’s passions. Since childhood, music and art have naturally entwined throughout Trevett’s life, and now her job at Willamette’s Department of Music allows her to tap into a rich source of inspiration. “I love working in the music department,” says Trevett, who started there as an administrative assistant almost 13 years ago. “When I hear music played by the students or visiting artists, my mind instantly starts forming images of colors, shapes, lines and patterns that I incorporate into my art.” An accomplished artist who earned a BA in fine arts from Southern Oregon University, Trevett is particularly wellknown for her depictions of flowers. Observing that flowers
often share similar shapes with musical instruments, she’ll create a metamorphosis of the two objects. The cello/rose painting, a specially commissioned work by the music department, hangs in the studio of Professor Emeritus Bruce McIntosh to commemorate his retirement from Willamette. The Salem Chamber Orchestra commissioned the French horn/ morning glory work to mark its 30th year. Previously, Trevett answered the orchestra’s call for artists to turn musical instruments into works of art by embellishing a trombone with an acrylic painting of a lily. Trevett’s creative journey began while she was growing up in the Chicago suburbs. A frequent visitor to the city’s symphony and Art Institute, she took piano and viola lessons and taught herself to paint in oils. In addition to music, Trevett finds inspiration in the natural world — in flowers, fruit, plants, seashells, rocks and landscapes. Like her idol, Georgia O’Keeffe, she often turns such natural shapes into semi-abstract and