Willard Dominick Retrospective at Gallery at The Gamble Mill, 2011

Bellefonte Historical and Cultural Association
Bellefonte, Pennsylvania

Willard Dominick Retrospective, "Viva L'Arte"
Gallery at The Gamble Mill
January 15 - April 15, 2011

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Willard Dominick was born April 3, 1920 in Bolivar, Westmoreland County, PA. At an early age he was involved in art and mechanics. At Indiana University of PA he was drafted into the army just three months before graduating. After the war, he completed his bachelor’s degree at Indiana and an advanced degree at the University of Colorado and Penn State University in Art Education.

Throughout his war years on Guadalcanal, New Georgia, Arundel, Central Solomon Islands and the Philippines, he sketched the contrasting scenes of jungle warfare and island beauty. He also kept an illustrated diary of daily army life. Descriptive accounts were not permitted but the command and censors overlooked his violation. Miraculously, many sketchbooks, diaries and short stories survived jungle storages and reached home in Bolivar. While recuperating from malaria in an Auckland hospital he was befriended by New Zealanders who sent the early part of his works to Bolivar after the war. Through the action of Major General James B. Stodart, who valued the works and their preservation, the entire collection was installed in the War College, U.S. Army Heritage and Education Center in Carlisle, PA. The center has made the collection available to educators, authors and historians.

Fascinated by the arts and the beauty of Italy he traveled there several times-once on an eight month travel-study program of LaVerne College. During these trips, he made a lot of watercolor paintings that provided material for larger studio paintings.

Dominick’s works have been widely exhibited in private and corporate collections. These include: National Academy of Art, Butler Institute of American Art, Mainstreams U.S.A., Penn Memorial Museum, Southern Alleghenies Museum of Art, Westmoreland Nationals, Pennsylvania Watercolor Society and the U.S. Army Heritage and Education Center.

Married to Caroline McCunn in 1946 and sadly widowed in 1990, Willard has two loving and supportive daughters, Dr. Susan Mussoline, an art teacher in Fort Lauderdale and Kathy Marino, an elementary teacher in Clearfield County. Remaining single, he has an esteemed soul mate, Beverly Owens. She is a cum laude, talented pianist, retired music teacher and a yummy cook.

Willard was employed as an art teacher and the Supervisor of Art for 36 years with the Clearfield Area School District. Retired from art teaching in 1982, he works as an artist and still exhibits in local, regional and national shows at the age of 90. He lives in Clearfield.

The United States Army Heritage and Education Center at the Army War College in Carlisle is featuring a few of Willard's WW II sketches on its website. Click here.