By the Entertainer | Posted: Friday, April 4, 2003 12:00 am
PHILOMATH - Local artists celebrate the life and work of a home orchard specialist and Corvallis resident in "Centenarian in the Garden: Artists Celebrate the Life and Work of Cecil Compton," an exhibition of paintings and watercolors on display Friday, April 11 through May 10, at the Benton County Historical Museum, 1101 Main St.
A reception will take place for the artists and Compton, who recently celebrated his 100th birthday, from 2 to 4 p.m. Saturday, April 12, in the museum gallery.
Compton was born in 1903 in Seattle. He lived on farms while growing up in Washington and California. He completed his Ph.D. in pomology (the study of fruit trees) at Cornell University in Ithaca, N.Y., where he met his wife, Mary. She received her doctorate in plant physiology.
In 1951, the Comptons moved to Corvallis. Compton worked as professor of plant nutrition at Oregon State University from 1954 to 1968.
As a member of the department of horticulture emeritus faculty, Compton still attends emeritus professors' meetings each month.
Compton's two-acre property is intensively planted with 160 varieties of apples as well as several varieties of pear, plum, cherry, peach and nut trees.
He has planted 40 grapevines of 11 varieties, which he still prunes and ties himself. He also has planted blueberries, many of which were started from seed by his late wife. The orchard also contains persimmon, paw-paw and many ornamental plants.
Artist Barb Campbell, who has been Compton's next-door neighbor for 10 years, conceived the idea of honoring Compton's extraordinary life through artistic interpretation of Compton's home orchard. The exhibition will include artists' interpretations of his orchard and the fruits of his labor.
Artists whose works appear in the exhibit include Tom Allen, Judith Baker, Donna Beverly, Barb Campbell, Carolee S. Clark, Signe Davis, Katy Grant-Hanson, Edith Harrison, Linda Humphrey, Jana Johnson, Chuck Meitel, Sue Noel, Lorraine Price, Beatrice Rubenfeld, Wendy Ware and Dee Yarnell.