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REGGIE BEHL, Artist, Teacher, and Art Missionary. was born in New York City in 1922, grew up in Long Beach Long Island, and received her Bachelor of Fine Arts (BFA) from Pratt Institute, majoring in Art Education. She passed away on Sunday, March 6th, 2011 after losing a battle with pancreatic cancer and congestive heart failure. She taught Art in all levels, from preschool up through Graduate, and Continuing Education and loved every minute of it. After raising three boys in Southern California, she returned to school, and received her Masters in Painting from California State University at Northridge. She has exhibited her paintings, won many honors, and has work in several museums and prestigious public collections. She was an elected member of the National Water Color Society. Over 35 years ago, while living in New Jersey, she started teaching "Fun" art classes for Rutgers University Extension - courses such as "Art walks", and "The World Through An Artist's Eyes". After moving to Albuquerque in 1979, based on her extensive traveling, during which she was sketching constantly, she developed the "Quick Sketching for Travel" weekend workshop concept for University of New Mexico Continuing Education, which she was still teaching several times a year. This workshop was also a sellout at the University of California until late in 2007, when she "retired" after presenting 63 weekend workshops. She had also taught this same workshop for the Smithsonian Institution in Washington, and the County Museum of Natural History in Los Angeles, plus a variation called "Quick Sketching for Interior Designers" for the International Institute of Interior Designers. The classes generated a large fan base of sketchers who kept in contact with her for years, constantly sending her their latest efforts. In a recent exhibit of paintings at the University of New Mexico's Jonson Gallery, she used unusual materials such as copper, manipulated foil, stainless steel shavings, and silverpoint. This, combined with her global travel sketches, suggested the name of the exhibit - "Explorations". She was recently in the throes of writing a book on Quick Sketching for Travel, at the request of many of her ex-students. Her travels, with her husband, Hal, covered all of the continents, and over 80 countries. Her output, on a trip, was usually over 100 sketches per week. She was a fantastic gardener, who organized annual sales of surplus plants, which raised substantial amounts of money for People Living Through Cancer. She leaves a wonderful family - three sets of sons and daughters-in-law: Bob and JoAnna of Palo Alto, California, Ed and Jeannie of Weston, Florida, Rick and Krisztina of Laguna Beach; California; granddaughters, Kristi Bayne, and Debbie Boucher; grandsons, Doug and Danny; great- granddaughters, Kalyssa Bayne and Elin Boucher; great-grandson, Jack Boucher, along with several grand dogs and cats. Her long term sweetheart and husband Hal is still in Albuquerque. A public "Celebration of Life" will be held in about a month.
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