Meet Bill Wood

Bill Wood is the owner of Bill’s Art Center and Gallery in Camdenton. He spent the first 30+ years of his working life in construction, focusing mainly on finish carpentry and building beautiful custom cabinets. When an ice storm hit the area in 2004 and he was stuck at home for a week, he found himself returning to an earlier passion in his life: oil painting.

Encouragement and critique from other artists served to spur Bill onward in his passion to become an artist. Bill became a member of the Ozark Brush & Palette Club and met many local artists. One of the artists he met there was the owner of a custom framing store that carried some art supplies. In 2012, Bill got the chance to purchase this store – which became Bill’s Art Center and Gallery. He envisioned a place where local artists could display their work and people who loved art could gather to share ideas and get encouragement to grow in their creativity. In 2016, he moved the store to the current location at 94 N. Business Highway 5 and now has more space to continue making that dream a reality.

Custom framing is a huge part of Bill’s daily work. He has framed thousands of paintings, prints, and photographs but also a variety of treasured objects. Bill’s Art Center has a gallery that includes the work of over 60 local artists for sale. Classes are taught by various artists at both the store and at Bill’s Possum Hollow Studio. Professional grade art supplies are always in stock.

Bill’s latest passion is to make Camdenton an art destination. To achieve this goal Bill has become involved with others who love art and created the Community Art League to facilitate art activities in the Camdenton area. He was a founding member of Camdenton’s Art Advisory Board and is the co-president of the Ozark Brush & Palette Club. These various organizations are working together to bring art to our community.