“Focus on Figures,” original water-based oil paintings by Carmen L. Armstrong, will be on display at The Art Box, 308 E. Lincoln Highway in downtown DeKalb, Oct. 1 through 27. A reception for the artist is scheduled from 3 to 5 p.m. Oct. 7.

Armstrong is a professor emeritus at the Northern Illinois University School of Art.

“Coloring books, art student, artist, art educator-professor-author and artist again. That says it in a nutshell,” Armstrong said in a news release. “It would take a book to credit the wonderful family and human influences that opened doors for me to pursue the force that compelled me toward a career in art.”