LaSalle native Kathryn Rachal Woodruff
When artist and talented art educator Kathryn Rachal Woodruff looks at an empty canvas, she envisions more than a mere painting. She sees a unique opportunity to connect with others in some of their most important and life-changing moments through art, with a focus on memorial portraits. She describes herself as a working/studio artist who ‘creates artwork that both commemorates cherished memories and meaningful milestones.’
Kathryn, a former Olla resident and a 2004 graduate of LaSalle High School, has extensive family roots in LaSalle Parish. Her paternal grandparents, Joe and Joan Rachal, were lifetime residents of Olla and her dad, Mark Rachal, graduated from LHS. Her husband, Dennis, was raised in Urania and the couple, who now reside in Sabine Parish, has three wonderful children: Ian, Hazel, and Lettie, who all show early potential in artistic pursuits.
She attributes her art interest and talents to her Grandmother Joan who created lovely paintings of flowers and landscapes and to her dad who always had his hands in wood building something new. Kathryn found her niche using a brush, oil paints, and a desire to make her creations meaningful. At LHS, she credits her teacher, Mr. Jason Gresham as an inspiration and a mentor. That, along with her outstanding talent, has led to her unique role as an artist whose talent results in artwork that portrays not only skill but consists of deep human connections.
“I love doing memorial portraits…it connects me with people and goes beyond what we typically experience in everyday interactions. The portraits allow me to celebrate and preserve the memory of someone who was loved while offering comfort and meaning to the people they left behind,” she shared. “It brings comfort to them in their grieving process.”
A new venture that also allows her to record life’s special moments is wedding art. She sets up her easel (which once belonged to her grandmother and which bears her original signature), supplies, and canvas on site and begins to capture the venue, the scenery, and the joyful bride and groom as they exchange vows. The painting continues after the ceremony concludes with Kathryn adding finishing touches at her home studio. The final result is breathtaking and becomes a part of the wedding celebration that is unique and cherished.
“With wedding portraits, I see a similar connection to memorial portraits expressed in a different way. Wedding portraits celebrate the beginning of a new chapter, capturing the joy, love and significance of a moment that couples will treasure for years to come,” she explained. “Being able to create artwork that commemorates both cherished memories and meaningful milestones is what makes portraiture so rewarding to me.”
Initially, she was concerned that wedding portraiture would be a challenge and admitted the thought of doing it frightened her. Nonetheless, she began preparing for the possibility of wedding art by creating promotional materials, etc. She stepped into the venture after receiving a message from a potential customer requesting that she do a live wedding painting. Afterwards, she ‘went public’ and found it also brings a meaningful purpose to her art and to those for whom she paints.
“I was worried about the surrounding distractions of painting at a live wedding,” she said. “The music, the people asking questions about my work as I painted…but I enjoy the hustle and bustle! My goal now is to do one a month- max! After the wedding, I bring the paintings home and add realism.”
Among her other artistic accomplishments is designing and painting the 2020 Zwolle Tamale Festival poster. Sharing it was something she decided she would enjoy doing so she did and her design was chosen. She paints oil landscapes and sometimes does portraits of people. She does public artworks including one in downtown Many painted on a large fiberglass fish that details the town and nearby Cypress Bend.
“My kids love to drive downtown and look at it. They point and tell me I painted it! It’s labeled ‘The Heart of Sabine’ and captures the Town Depot on one side and fireworks over the lake on the other side. If you look closely, you can see I added a personal detail…I painted my 3 kids really small at the depot,” she shared.
A public educator in Sabine Parish, Kathryn teaches Talented Art in four of the schools across all grade levels. Students go through a rigorous process to qualify for the course, and she is only one of two teachers teaching the classes.
“Painting is something that makes me feel closest to myself. I had rheumatoid arthritis at 16 and later in life I had to have my wrist fused. For a long while my thumb wasn’t operable and it was scary. I felt disconnected. I told the surgeon if I’d thought there was a chance I would not have been able to paint, I wouldn’t have undergone the surgery!” she reflected. “I’d drop the brush like I had butterfingers…but now I’m able to do details and to hold the brush.”
Admitting to falling in love with the people she paints, while she loves all expressions of her artistic side, portraits remain her favorite. She encourages her students, her children, and others who paint to keep their talents fresh and never reach the place where they say, “I used to paint.”
“Keep that part of you active,” she advised. “Creativity runs deep, but it never looks the same from one person to the next and that’s what makes it special. Now, my own children are beginning to carve out their own creative paths through the things they make. My son does portraits, my middle daughter is showing talent, and my youngest daughter takes her sketch book everywhere she goes.”
Kathryn Rachal Woodruff – art educator, artist extraordinaire, wife and mother- is busy creating works of ‘heart’ and allowing her unique talents to bring meaning, comfort, and joy to the lives of others.
