Life & Work with Pinkie Mistry of Maryville, TN

Today we’d like to introduce you to Pinkie Mistry

Hi Pinkie, thanks for joining us today. We’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
I grew up in Sevierville, Tennessee. Graduated from Sevier County High School in 1995. I moved to Maryville in 2017 after my husband Jeremy and I got engaged. We have a home near downtown and very close to my gallery/studio.
I’ve been drawing for as long as I can remember. My mom and my older sister were big inspirations for me. My sister would draw gorgeous pencil sketches and my mom would teach me step by step on drawing birds. I kept up the drawing all through my school years. I took a long break from drawing/painting during my 20’s and pursued a career in graphic design.

In 2015 one of my graphic design clients, Rocky Top Wine Trail in Sevierville asked for paintings to be featured on wine labels for their Pink Series wines they made for October’s breast cancer awareness month. Ironically enough just two years later I was diagnosed with breast cancer. After my treatment I had donated a painting to The Robert Thomas Foundation at LeConte Medical for their Paint the Mountains Pink program which gives free mammograms to uninsured women. I’m thankful to them for the help I received. The painting hangs in their breast center waiting room. Since then I’ve donated to other charities to give back to my community through my art.

My first paid commission job was painting butterflies for Hillside Winery in Sevierville. Since then the commission work grew and I expanded to mural art and book illustrations. I painted my first mural The Wings of Wander butterfly wings in Downtown Sevierville in the summer of 2020. I’ve painted over 10 murals since then. I slowly transitioned from graphic design to painting on a regular basis.

In the summer of 2022 I opened my first gallery/studio space in Downtown Maryville located on the second floor of a local bookstore. In the summer of 2024 I moved to a larger space as I had grown out of my previous location. It’s located just one street over and still in downtown Maryville. With the larger space I’ve been able to hold events and art showings. I also painted a mural on my new storefront of white magnolia blooms reminiscent to a beautiful magnolia tree I grew up with in Sevierville.

We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
There’s been many obstacles and challenges in my career. I started my business as a freelance graphic designer 19 years ago, when my son Nathan was born. It was a pretty stable gig for about 10 to 12 years as I was in the tourist industry living in Sevier County. Some clients grew and started their own marketing department which caused me to change the way I do things. One thing I could offer was illustrations and paintings. The work shifted to commission pieces, mural projects and children’s book illustrations. I still do the occasional graphic design job.
After opening my gallery I came across more challenges. I’m out of the tourism industry and become more of a novelty which is not needed as much. Finding art lovers is a bit difficult. I’ve had some luck from social media, word of mouth advertising and networking events. It’s been a bit of a struggle but so far commissions have been coming in.

As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar what can you tell them about what you do?
I specialize in large canvas oil paintings. This is probably my favorite thing to do. I love working with textures so you’ll see a lot of my paintings using a palette knife technique. I use a brush occasionally too, depending on my mood that day.
Most of the work you see in my gallery are landscapes, florals, dancers, birds inspired by either the natural beauty where I live or my travels abroad. Each piece has a story and a special meaning to me. I would say what sets me apart from other artists is the commission pieces I do. It brings me so much joy to paint a meaningful and unique piece of the art for each one of my clients.
I started doing mural art in 2020. My first project was the Wings of Wander mural in Downtown Sevierville. It spans from 24 feet wide and 16 feet tall. This project was a part of Downtown Sevierville’s revitalization process. Talk about a challenge and learning experience but it’s a project I’m most proud of as it’s in my hometown just a couple of blocks from where I grew up and the art has so much meaning for me and the community.

Any advice for finding a mentor or networking in general?
I go to networking and charity events in my area. Those have been great sources for me to meet new people and share my art in the community. Social media of course has been a great outlet as well to reach people and advertise my work. I’ve never had a mentor throughout my career. I wish I did. There are well known artists in my area that I always looked up to. If I could be a mentor now I’d love that opportunity to help someone navigate this line of work.

Pricing:

• $1500 – $4500 – Original oil paintings
• $1800 and up – commission
• $20 – $150 – merchandise (bags, blankets…)
• $15 and up – various style prints

Contact Info:

• Website: https://pinkiemistry.com/
• Instagram: @pinkiemistryart
• Facebook: Pinkie Mistry Art