Elaine Badgley Arnoux was born in Omaha, Nebraska and moved to Southern California when she was 11. She was granted a scholarship to Chouinard Art Institute.
Elaine Badgley Arnoux helped found the San Luis Obispo Art Association in 1952, and was its first president. Painter, portraitist, teacher, activist and illustrator, Ms. Arnoux’s works are featured in the collections of numerous museums, including the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco, the National Women’s Museum in Washington, D.C., the Triton Museum of Art, the de Saisset Museum, and the Berkeley Art Museum. Some of Ms. Arnoux’s San Francisco portraits are featured in the book, The People of San Francisco: Lives of Accomplishment. She lives in San Francisco and continues to paint actively.