A beloved Mandan Art Teacher’s legacy is living on through her work. This weekend, all that work is going on sale and for a good cause.
Diane Boschee was the art teacher at Mandan High School from 1974 to 2001. She passed away after a battle with Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma last last year, but left a lasting imprint on the community.
“She’s kind of legend status. It’s kind of what I try to embody in my teaching,” said former student and current Mandan High School art teacher John M. Gieser.
She was an artist herself, keeping hundreds of works done throughout the years. Anything from traditional oil paintings to eggs.
Long-time friend and fellow teacher Lynn Conlon said, “I think that she has some prolific paintings, and her art eggs, the emu and ostrich eggs that she scratch-art in and scrimshaw are fantastic. I don’t know that I’ve seen eggs that good.”
This Saturday, it’ll all be auctioned off. And some of the funds raised are going back into a scholarship for a Mandan High School student pursuing fine arts in college.
“Anything that furthers the arts, no matter what it is or who is involved in it, it’s got to be something special and something important because it gives these people an avenue, another avenue to pursue their creative interests,” said Patrick Pins, also a fellow teacher and long-time friend of Diane’s.
It’s what Diane wanted, and her family and friends had no hesitation to put in the hard work to make it happen.
Conlon added, “I think it’s the way that your artist lives on. I think it’s the person that affected you, it’s a way for you to remember them.”
Along with the art auction, they will be hosting a memorial for anyone in the community to come and remember Diane’s legacy.
The memorial and auction will be held at Mandan High School starting at 10 a.m. You can find the online auction here: https://www.32auctions.com/BoscheeBenefit2018.
