the elvis artist

ABOUT BETTY

Audio Interviews and Video

Artist Statement

As the daughter of a career military man, I spent my early life frequently on the move. With the constant change that surrounded me, my only constant was my art. By the time I graduated from high school, my journey included seventeen different schools, which provided me with subjects ranging from the Colorado Rockies to the military bases of Europe.

The subject matter of my art varies, encompassing a multitude of places and settings, but my first love will always be faces. No matter the lifestyle or the background, each subject I draw has a story to tell. I use pencils, paints and more recently photoshop, to capture an intimate glimpse into the life of a person, to see a side of them that most people don’t. I make art not so that people can see an image, but so that they can be transported to a different time and place. In similar fashion to my life, I want the viewer to experience a new environment, not simply admire artistic talent.

Over time my skills and style have evolved, and I’m continually learning and evolving with new mediums. I draw inspiration from the people and places of my travels. I try to capture moments in time that evoke these experiences and express the many and varied types of life that can be found throughout the world.

Professional Highlights

  • Artist for JADEI GRAPHICS, Los Angeles, California, 2010-current.
  • Official Artist for Elvis Presley Enterprises, 2006-current.
  • Collaborate art project, Japan 1997
  • Elvis Presley Enterprise Logo design & drawings, “International Tribute Week, 1982-86.
  • Commissioned Artwork for the President of RCA, proudly part of the permanent collection of the Country Hall of Fame.
  • Billboard of Elvis from Betty Harper’s original American Trilogy was revealed in ’78. This was the first official act to publicly pay tribute to the cities lustrous citizen.
  • Commissioned painting of Elvis for Felton Jarvis, Elvis’ record producer 1977, private collection.
  • Commissioned by Jack Daniels Distilleries, twelve drawings of “Old Timers”, Lynchburg, Tennessee. 1970’s
  • Album covers designed for RCA, Columbia Records, Jim Reeves Enterprises, Loretta Lynn, and many others, 1970’s.

Exhibitions

  • Center for Southern Folklore, Memphis, Tennessee, 2012
  • One Sun Art Gallery, New Orleans, Louisiana, 2011 current
  • Rock Art Show, Traveling Exhibit and Online Gallery, 2010-current
  • 45th National Central South Art Exhibition, Photography, Florence, Italy, 2010
  • Royal Gallery, New Orleans 2008-current
  • Ashburton Art Gallery, Ashburton, New Zealand, 2009
  • New Theatre, Kansas City, Kansas, 2008
  • Gum Tree Museum of Art, Tupelo, Mississippi,2007
  • Customs House Museum Arts and Crafts Exhibition, Clarksville, TN, 2006
  • Renaissance Regional Art Exhibit, 2005
  • 38th Annual Central South Art Exhibit, Leu Gallery, Nashville, TN, “United We Stand, Divided We Fall”, Frances Miller Memorial Award, 2003
  • American Pop Culture Gallery, Georgetown, Washington, D.C., 2000
  • California State Fair, Sacramento, California, 1997
  • Local Color Gallery, Nashville, Tennessee, 1992-94
  • Memphis Music & Heritage Festival, Memphis, Tennessee, 1996
  • Gestine’s Gallery, Beale Street, Memphis, Tennessee, 1996-98

Limited Edition Prints

Books by Betty

  • Newly Discovered Drawings of Elvis, Bantam 1979
  • The Magic Of Elvis, Through The Art of Betty Harper, 1985
  • Suddenly and Gently, Visions of Elvis, 1987
  • ELVIS, Color My World, 2004

Commissioned Book Covers / or Illustrated

  • “The Surgeon’s Wife, by William H. Coles (Art for Mobile App)
  • Elvis, Like Any Other Soldier by Jerry Osborne & Barbara Hahn
  • My Treasured Memories of Elvis by Judy Palmer
  • A Candle in the Wind by Bill Burk
  • The Humes Years by Bill Burk
  • The Sun Years by Bill Burk
  • The Tupelo Years by Bill Burk
  • Elvis through My Eyes by Bill Burk
  • Soldier Boy Elvis by Bill Burk
  • Presleyana IV by Jerry Osborne
  • Dispelling the Myths by Todd Rheingold
  • Elvis Fan Cookbook Holiday Edition, Wooten Printing Company, North Carolina