Barbara Tardo

2021 Distinguished Alumna - College of Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences

Barbara Tardo graduated from Southeastern in 1960 with a bachelor’s degree in Art. Her medium of choice was sculpture and, after teaching briefly in Algiers, she went on to receive a Master’s degree in Sculpture from the University of New Mexico, and a Master of Fine Arts degree from LSU.

Barbara returned to Southeastern in 1965 as an Instructor, when they had just two and a half faculty in the art department. She went on to become Assistant Professor and then Associate Professor, and after 31 years of teaching sculpture, drawing and art history, she retired in 2002.

Barbara’s art career has been extensive. She has been featured in numerous galleries and juried exhibitions, both regionally and nationally, and has taught workshops and given lectures across the region. Barbara also has generously donated work to various non-profit organizations for their fundraisers, including Southeastern, the St. Tammany Art Association and Habitat for Humanity. She has recently donated a large portion of her work to Regional Arts Center here in Hammond.