Talent and a love of painting are just two of the things that Peggy Taylor, Marsha Thrift Marion, and Bonnie Dempster have in common.  Something else they share, along the same lines, is that they make up one quarter of the Salem Art sisters, a group of 12 friends who came together to share studio space above the Moravian Book and Gift Shop back in 2007 and who continue to paint and exhibit their work together.

Bonnie, who took a lot of art and art history courses at Salem College, said she had never tried “doing art” before joining the group. “I never thought I would paint or sell anything ever before I joined the Art Sisters,” Bonnie said.  She and Peggy traveled together to the mountains for art retreats that they called “camp,” and gradually Bonnie began to dip her toes into the painting pond. Now, she is proud to call herself one of the few watercolor artists around Winston-Salem.

Both Peggy and Marsha have been painting for most of their lives. Marsha taught at the elementary and high school levels for many years before finding her way into design, and works mostly in pastels and oils now. Peggy did commercial design for Winston Printing before she was married, and has worked in “every medium you can think of” but has recently begun to focus on only one. “When you get older, you want things to dry in a hurry,” she said wryly, “so now I do acrylics.”

Eager to do something with their talent that would benefit the community, the trio happily signed on in 2011 to participate in the very first Senior Services’ Art Show and Sale Benefiting Meals-on-Wheels—the brainchild of Bonnie and another local artist, Dell James.  “We decided that we needed to give back,” said Bonnie. “It’s a win-win situation,” she noted, “because people want to help Meals-on-Wheels, and we love to see other people’s work.”  The three have continued to be part of that fundraiser in each year since.

The show and sale will be back for its eighth year in March 2018, but, happily, the public doesn’t have to wait until then to get to see Bonnie, Peggy and Marsha’s artwork.  “Views from the Heart” is free and open to the public at the Senior Services Center, located at 2895 Shorefair Drive, in Winston-Salem, between 8:00AM and 4:30PM.  Most of the works are available for purchase.