Art Maker: June Ferrin, painter and teacher

June Ferrin, who’s 87, has been painting and drawing for decades. She also has taught watercolor painting, first in California and more recently in the now-closed Berkshire Trail Elementary School in Cummington, where she leads classes for adult students who praise her for the community spirit she brings to the sessions.

It might not have been, Ferrin notes. Years ago, she was working in real estate when a client with a gallery saw her then-private work and invited her to exhibit with her. “I bought a simple set of Prang watercolors, painted flowers in my garden, and submitted three works, which sold at the opening,” says Ferrin. “I never looked back and have been painting, showing and teaching since.”

Hampshire Life: Tell us about the work you’re currently doing. What does it involve, and what are you trying to achieve?

June Ferrin: My work involves my own watercolor painting but also teaching. What I hope to achieve in my teaching is to provide a supportive environment for my students — some advice and instruction as needed. I am always struck by the diversity of style and approach in the group.

H.L.: What do you draw inspiration from for your painting?

J.F.: Color and light inspire me — mostly in nature and its flowers, shapes. I am moved by trees. If I were to return to life, I would be a tree. I’ve seen several in my 87 years that I would choose to be.

Locally, I love Paula Gottlieb’s spontaneous colorful watercolors, as well as the ability of my student Natalie Stafford to capture light and detail.

H.L.: What’s the most recent exhibition or other event by another artist or group that you’ve attended and enjoyed?

J.F.: The Nick Cave show at MASS MOCA — an incredible feat. Also, my daughter, Leslie Ferrin, has had a gallery since her teens and works with collectors of ceramics. I am exposed to many works of artists almost daily.

H.L.: Tell us a bit more about how your daughter got involved in art.

J.F.: When she was a child, we did all the mother-daughter, hands-on activities typical of parents, and we took advantage of the museums in New York, too. At age eight, she became a spinner and wool dyer, then was introduced to clay in middle school. She followed that interest as a potter, then became involved in the business side of art. Today she runs Ferrin Contemporary, a ceramics gallery in the MASS MOCA complex, and she represents artists and is a consultant for collectors.

H.L.: If you weren’t an artist, what do you think you’d be?

J.F.: I would choose to be anyone totally dedicated to a particular interest — scientific, historic, social, etc.

H.L:  Dream dinner party — who would you invite?

J.F.: Jane Goodall, the Leakeys, Albert Schweitzer, Margaret Mead, Katharine Hepburn — all had or have a passion and dedication to their work and the self-confidence to do what they believed in, sometimes against the common rules and expectations of the culture.

— Steve Pfarrer