TOPEKA — Diane Gillenwater will display her art work at the Mulvane Art Museum’s Mulvane Store through Nov. 1.

Gillenwater is well-known in the music community for her passionate fiddle playing and creative music and artistic abilities. Diane grew up with the constant aroma of oil paint in her home, observing painting career of her father, Fred Meek. She has won various purchase awards over the years for her pencil and pen and ink drawings and paintings. Most recently she was a contributing artist for the Painted Violins Fundraiser for the Topeka Symphony. Her painted violins have become the perfect way for Diane to combine her artistic and musical talents.

As a performer, composer, producer and teacher Gillenwater has worked with some of the best players in the industry such as Mark O’Conner, John Hartford, Kerry Livgren and Byron Berline. She has a violin performance degree from Washburn University and was the Kansas State Fiddle Champion in 2002 and runner-up in 2007.

Gillenwater performs regularly with Pastense Bluegrass Band and with Judy Coder & Cowgirl Swing, both Topeka-based groups, and is the co-producer and musical composer for Prairie Glimpses, the Kansas Project, a 15 song compilation CD written about people, places and events in Kansas. She is the director of the Strings Program at the Americana Music Academy in Lawrence. She teaches fiddle-styles, beginning guitar and mandolin to students of all ages and abilities both at the Academy and in her private studio in Topeka.