In this monthly feature, we visit with well-known Central Oregonians and get a glimpse into their lives at home.

Cate O’Hagan is many things to many people: artist, rancher, cellist, even ordained minister. But the one role she is most often associated with is as executive director of Arts Central, a Bend-based, nonprofit art education and advocacy group. She is, by most local artists’ accounts, the region’s biggest champion of artists and their work.

“At Arts Central, we believe in advocacy for art education, public art and the cultural trust,” O’Hagan said, from her kitchen table at her ranch in Sisters, which she jokingly calls Rancho Relaxo. “At the Art Station (Arts Central’s educational branch), we have local artists teaching classes, and we have the Van Go project so we can do art outreach to children who might not have access to art, and we do artists in the schools.”

In addition to spearheading these programs through Arts Central, O’Hagan was instrumental in showcasing and selling local artists’ pieces in the now-defunct Mirror Pond Gallery in downtown Bend, which closed in late 2008 after it learned it wasn’t exempt from property taxes. But this setback didn’t vex O’Hagan’s spirit; she came back and created a new use for the former Mirror Pond Gallery and renamed it Arts Central: Education and Resource Center, where additional art classes are now being held.

But back at the ranch, O’Hagan can leave the stress behind and relax at her bright, modest wooden ranch house, which evokes a modern art gallery feel mixed in with a little cowboy chic.

“I come from old Northwest pioneering stock. My grandfather was at Elk Lake in the early 1900s, and my father was an attorney and the head of (the) Fish and Wildlife (department) in Oregon,” said O’Hagan, 58, who describes her own artwork as mixed-media installation work with a ceremonial bent. “My mother was an artist with a (master of fine arts) from the Chicago Art Institute.”

Through the decades, O’Hagan has been able to follow in her parents’ footsteps, both as an artist and as a “pioneer” on her own ranch.

O’Hagan can talk about the elk, coyotes and cougars that roam her 60-acre property with just as much ease as she talks about artists and their works.

The art she hangs inside her home is decidedly O’Hagan — she refuses the mundane.

“There’s this art piece here that my neighbor, old Phil, used to say, ‘I don’t know what the hell that is, but I appreciate that you have it,’” O’Hagan says, laughing as she points to a mixed-media sculpture hanging on her wall. “It sort of looks phallic, doesn’t it? But with these abstract symbolic pieces you never get tired of them, because they aren’t so literal. I love it when artists go beyond the physical reality.”

O’Hagan has been trying to stretch the imagination and boundaries of art by introducing new artists and styles in Central Oregon since she took over at Arts Central in 1994, but her art experience goes back much further.

At 23 years old, O’Hagan headed the publications department at the Corcoran Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., where she worked with renowned artists, including Andy Warhol and puppeteer Jim Henson, creator of the Muppets.

Those heady years were exciting, but O’Hagan says there came a day when she was ready to head back west, to “home.”

“My East Coast friends and artists thought I was crazy moving to the backwaters; they thought I was ruining my career,” O’Hagan recalled with a hearty laugh. “There was this East Coast criticism that the West Coast art was too pretty, with not enough critical thinking, you weren’t getting the grittiness of the city. They thought you had … pretty landscapes with mountains and rivers (in the West), but nothing really innovative in art.”

O’Hagan made her way to Portland, where she worked with the museum, symphony, ballet and theater communities before finding her way to Central Oregon, where she thought she might retire from the arts.

“I didn’t care what people thought. I was done with the arts and that rarified environment. There was a certain amount of elitism at that (art) level,” O’Hagan said.

O’Hagan retired from the art scene in 1990 and moved just outside of Madras to run a herd of red Angus cattle for four years. But as an artist, she couldn’t stay away for long. She heard about Mirror Pond Gallery needing a director.

“I said, ‘What the heck,’ and sold all my cattle, and from the proceeds I took over the gallery and worked (initially) for free as the executive director,” O’Hagan said. “What I always wanted to do was open the (art) doors to as many people as possible.”

That mission of making art more accessible to many people has driven O’Hagan on her various quests, and along the way she’s become a big advocate of saving historic buildings.

First was the historic 1904 Craftsman bungalow, the Goodwillie-Allen-Rademacher home, which eventually became Mirror Pond Gallery. Then, O’Hagan was able to help save the 1911 Oregon Trunk Railway Passenger Station to house the Art Station.

The big push for O’Hagan now is to continue her mission by supporting education and advocacy, which she says are two sides of the same coin. Instead of school districts cutting the arts out of their budgets, she says, educators should realize that art is creative learning.

O’Hagan leads a walking tour of the outbuildings on her ranch, and points out the stables and a large shed that houses her 1981, two-cylinder Citroen, upholstered in black and white houndstooth print — an unusual car that fits O’Hagan’s artist side. Farther up the path are the John Deere riding machines, which fit the rancher and the farmer in O’Hagan.

We chatted with O’Hagan about her life in rural Oregon, her favorite artwork and more.

How long have you lived in Central Oregon? I moved from Portland to this area in 1990, and purchased this house and forest acreage in 1996. I had a good career in Portland and Washington, D.C., museums, the Oregon Symphony, ballet and theater. I feel very fortunate to work in the arts in this region for such a well-respected and solid organization as Arts Central.

What I love about my home is … Well, first, I have a roof over my head. Not everyone is so fortunate. The home is filled with art and is very warm, inviting and comforting. … It is my refuge. People do seem to like to gather here, as it is very cozy. It’s like a safe house for the aesthetically inclined and seems to be tolerated by the traditionalists like ol’ neighbor Phil.

My favorite room is … The house is small. I would say the entire front of the house, which is nearly all windows, a French door onto the porch and view of the pasture, forest and mountains. Plus, I can keep an eye on the road, which a lot of us do around here. Funny things happen in the woods, which is why my neighborhood pals and I formed a posse.

My favorite possession is … A few years ago, my neighbors and I were evacuated from our homes due to a forest fire with very short notice, like 30 minutes. We were scattered to the winds for a week. I was grateful that I do not covet possessions. Saved me from quite a bit of angst. Losing the art would have been the most tragic. I know everyone who created it.

If I had a Monday off to do anything I wanted to do at home, alone, I’d … Finish that art project that has been languishing in my studio (actually laundry room) for months, write a chapter of wisdom if I could think of any, and dust off my cello. As a topper, I would grade my driveway with my 1973 John Deere.

Three things you’ll always find in my refrigerator are … Olives, goat cheese and wine.

Are you handy around the house? I have to be. Otherwise I would spend my entire life waiting for Joe the repair person.

Have you had a favorite home-improvement project or do-it-yourself adventure? Owning a home is basically one big improvement project. I am looking forward to reorganizing the shop, known as the “Matrix,” and the storage shed, known as the “Annex.” Painting is the most rewarding, as it immediately transforms one’s environment. I am not afraid of deep color. White is actually a very aggressive color, as it is highly reflective, so I tend to avoid it. Art often does not show well on white, contrary to popular belief.

My favorite piece of artwork in the house is … Way too tough a question for me to tackle, as they all speak to me.

What do you like to cook? As we head into summer, I look forward to all the fun I can have with the grill. Food is a social activity, and there is nothing like gathering around the bonfire with good company and a tasty meal.

Do you eat out often? I really don’t go out that often. I work in Bend and live in Sisters, so if I was inclined, I could eat out in my car a lot. Sisters is so very lucky to have Jen’s Garden and Thyme — top-of-the-line restaurants, and I think the world of owners Jen and TR (McCrystal).

What’s your idea of the perfect get-together at home? A gathering of warm friends debating hot topics.

What do you usually have for breakfast? A banana … I just can’t eat a big meal first thing, even though I know we are supposed to have a hearty breakfast. Plus, it travels in its own packaging.

If you could have a second home anywhere in the world, where would it be? I love exactly where I am. However, I have loved my immersions into the Japanese, Chinese and Indian cultures. I definitely tend to gravitate to Eastern countries. I don’t think I would like to maintain a second home; I think I would rather roam the world and return here. If I had access to a small apartment in Portland, Chicago or New York, I could certainly handle it. A lot of my friends are still active in the arts in Portland, and I often miss working at that level.

What do you do when you have time to relax and recreate in Central Oregon? What’s that? Obviously I like to work a lot and need to get out more. At the same time, working on my land takes much of my free time, but I enjoy it.

Favorite three books/novels you’ve read? “The Elegance of the Hedgehog” by Muriel Barbery left me with the same otherworldly feeling as Ann Patchett’s “Bel Canto.” In contrast, I will reading anything by David Sedaris and recently finished “When You Are Engulfed in Flames.” Sedaris is wicked smart and die-laughing hilarious. As a New Yorker magazine fan, I love intelligence, insight and wit whenever I can get it.

Words I live by are … “Praise Allah but tie your camel” — my favorite Sufi phrase.