Full Circle

A God-given talent turns a childhood pass time into a lifelong love of art.

When Gloria Vance Turner completed the drawing of the blonde bride in first grade, her teacher, Mrs. Beason was so impressed that she immediately took it to Mr. Sigman, the principal of the Kernersville, North Carolina elementary school.

"Art and music were very important in North Carolina schools," Gloria remembered. Seeing the potential of the young artist, it was Mrs. Beason's encouragement that stimulated Gloria to pursue art throughout grade school.

In 1962, Gloria's father, Jack Vance, along with his wife, Lena and their young family, moved to Cheraw as a result of a job transfer. "I was in fifth grade, and I enrolled at Cheraw Elementary School," Gloria said. "Each week after school, artist Eleanor Spruill gave free art instruction at her home to any of the students that were interested in art. My favorite subject then was people. She taught us the proper techniques using pencils and charcoal. I still study Mrs. Spruill's watercolors today."

"Also, my teacher, Virginia Calhoun, encouraged me. Mrs. Calhoun allowed several of us to draw murals in her classroom," Gloria recalled. Gloria's love of the arts continued through high school, which also included playing the piano, and while she considered art as a career, she gave up those dreams as a young adult.

Fast forward to 1974. After leaving Cheraw for several years, Gloria returned to the Pee Dee area. Now, with a young family of her own, she was seeking employment, and she was hired as a secretary for Moore's advertising department. While she lacked secretarial skills, Gloria overcompensated with her talents as a graphic artist. Soon Gloria was sketching art for advertisements, and her ability and confidence blossomed throughout her thirty plus years at the retail chain.

Now a full-time artist, Gloria says Cheraw is a painter's paradise. "Cheraw truly inspires me. My love now is painting Cheraw's historic buildings. I am drawn to them. I constantly find myself stopping my car and taking new photos. Sometimes, after I have painted the same structure several times, I'll tell myself that I won't paint it again, but then I'll drive by, and the light will be hitting it in a way I have never seen, and I feel compelled to paint it again."

Currently, Gloria is working on several projects, including two commissioned paintings, a watercolor and an acrylic. "Sometimes, I find it difficult to begin a new painting, and I have to get myself motivated. (read more)