Elizabeth “Grandma” Layton is a nationally acclaimed artist from Wellsville, Kansas, who took up art for therapeutic reasons at the age of 68. Her crayon and colored pencil drawings are self-portraits that make powerful statements, usually with wit, on such subjects as death, women’s rights, frustration about old age, dieting, smoking, etc. Many people feel the longer you look at the drawings the more you discover and the more you appreciate their message. Layton’s credentials in the art world include showings in 100 cities across the nation, feature stories in Life magazine, Art in America, Psychology Today, and an interview on ABC’s Good Morning America show.

Elizabeth Layton did not always find it easy to show her work. One of the first people to be attracted to Layton’s art was free-lance writer Don Lambert. He undertook the task of presenting her drawings to galleries and museums but found that most institutions were either put off by the disturbing nature of Layton’s imagery or were unwilling to take a chance on an unknown.

The Wichita Art Museum was the first museum to offer Elizabeth Layton an important solo artist exhibition. In 1980, Through the Looking Glass inaugurated her career as a nationally known artist.