Notecards present an artist's perceptions of Blacklick Valley

Dorothy Santini as she appeared in 1953

Dismal to delightful...that's how you can describe the transformation of the Blacklick Valley through the eyes of artist Dorothy "Dottie" Santini.

Dr. Lewis Santini, MD, and his wife Dottie came to Nanty Glo in 1953 so Dr. Santini could assist Dr. George Ebandjieff at his clinic on Lloyd Street. Dottie Santini, a friend of Mrs. Ebandjieff and a native of Frostburg, Maryland, held a degree in fine arts from Ohio State University, and was a graduate of the Traphage School of Fashion Design in New York.

In her early 30s during her 1953-1954 sojourn in Nanty Glo, one can only imagine what thoughts raced through the mind of the young doctor's wife as she settled into a year in Nanty Glo with its green-shingled and yellow-tiled company houses, coal dust that blew in the wind, and foul-smelling sulphur fumes that wafted from the belly of the ever-smoldering bony piles. Whatever her thoughts and intrepretation were, she started sketching the neighborhoods of Nanty Glo, Cardiff, and Vintondale, capturing scenes from every season of the year. She later applied water colors to the sketches and the scenes took on the rustic folk art beauty we now can see in the reproduction collection that is available in the form of note cards.

The 5"x7" cards are available in packets of 11 and each card comes with its own envelope. The quality of the cards is such, however, that each can be framed and displayed as art work or given as gifts to the appreciative art lover.

Dr. Lewis Santini, center, is flanked by NTAMHS board member Dennis Dixon, left, and NTAMHS president Janet Toth

Dottie Santini passed away in September 1996, but her art and talent live on through her many artistic endeavors. The efforts of her husband Lewis, a practicing radiologist at the Geisinger Medical Center in Danville, Pa., in his desire to allow others to enjoy his wife's talent, are making the notecard collection of Dottie's interpretations of the local area available to Blacklick Valley residents.

"The notecard project was done to provide a legacy for my two grandchildren, Aiden, age nine, and Megan, age seven, and as a memorial to my wife," Dr. Santini said during his visit to the Nanty Glo Library in June." A small portion of the proceeds from the sale of the Santini collection items will be given to the Nant-Y-Glo Tri-Area Museum and Historical Society. The notecards and a few other watercolors included in the total collection are available from the Nanty Glo Public Library through June 2004. For further information re; cost of the notecards, contact the library at 942 Roberts Street, Nanty Glo, Pa. 15943, phone (814) 749-0111, email: NANTYGLO@NS.CCLIB.PA.US, or contact Dr. Lewis Santini at LSantini@Geisinger.edu.

Click here for a closer view of most of the paintings reproduced on the cards.

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