Today we’d like to introduce you to Pam Austin.
Hi Pam, we’d love for you to start by introducing yourself.
It was when experiencing the thrill of creating a drawing of a robin’s nest with three blue eggs that I knew being an artist was what I was born to do. My six year old self spent the remainder of my first grade school year gazing at the color chart standing in the corner and falling in love with the saturated hues of “Dick & Jane”. In my adult life the creative urgings quieted somewhat as I pursued a career in business and cared for my special needs daughter. However, my thirst for creativity was ever present so on rare occasions I would manage to squeeze in a drawing class or two.
Eventually I had the opportunity to seriously pursue my art dreams and became a full-time student of Watkins College of Art & Design in Nashville. Following school and after years of drawing and painting on my own and studying with various artists in most every art medium and genre, I discovered painting in a non-objective or abstract expressionistic style is what truly satisfies my soul.
Can you talk to us a bit about the challenges and lessons you’ve learned along the way. Looking back would you say it’s been easy or smooth in retrospect?
Challenges have presented themselves in different ways in different seasons. When a young single parent of a child with special needs, working full time with a salary and benefits was a necessity. There was little time or childcare available for art making. Eventually I was in a position to pursue my artistic passions so I found a career path that allowed more time and energy to paint. The balancing of life’s responsibilities and desires hasn’t always been easy but when looking back, I see it is those experiences of walking through challenges and overcoming obstacles that have directed my visual voice resulting in making my paintings richer, deeper, and hopefully more interesting for the viewer.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
My artistic explorations and pursuit of truth and authenticity is woven throughout my creative journey. There was a time when I was known for painting angels inspired by my daughter who is non-verbal. For the past 9 years my paintings have evolved into the non-objective or abstract style of expressionism I do today. I have a strong desire to express truth by portraying the essence of a feeling or experience. My art comes from deep within -not what I see with my eyes but from the spiritual voice within me. When intuitively creating on canvas with layers of paint, texture and mark making with various tools (which can include sticks or a variety of kitchen utensils), it feels like a dance with divine love. This dance is fulfilling, so satisfying, and can even be frustrating at times, but is always so engaging. My desire is that the viewer of my paintings will pause, look, listen, and step in where I left off, experiencing their own dance with their visual language.
Currently, my paintings seem to fall into one of two collections. Paintings expressing happiness, hope, and an overwhelming sense of gratitude are in the Joy series. This “Joy” shows itself in bright saturated color with bold shapes and movements dancing on canvas or paper. The other, “Glimpse”, is a collection of paintings that hold brief looks into what seems to be another realm. These glimmers occur as a result of prayer, meditation, and waiting and listening for God. This journey or process is what makes my heart sing. I find it to be an exciting and fulfilling adventure.
Though most of my work is large and on canvas, occasionally I work smaller and in water media on watercolor paper. Much to my surprise last fall a spontaneously created painting on paper was accepted into the National Watercolor Society’s international exhibition and won a substantial monetary award along with signature status. Needless to say, I was quite honored and grateful. Another recent and pleasant surprise was having one of my paintings selected as the cover image for the Summer 2025 magazine, “Second & Commerce”, Custom’s House Museum & Cultural Center, Clarksville, TN.
I honestly don’t know what sets me apart from others except me just being me. We are unique individuals with paths and experiences that shape each of us differently resulting in filters through which we see the world around us. My art is filtered through my story, or is my story filtered through my art? Anyway, maybe something in my story will speak to something in the viewers story and there will be a connection providing a place for the viewer to experience a dance with divine love.
What do you like best about our city? What do you like least?
Having spent the last 40+ years in and around Nashville, I have experienced a lot of change. The things I enjoy most are the many choices for great dining and entertainment. Whether a casual dinner in Germantown or an outstanding formal dinner in downtown, Nashville has it all. As far as entertainment goes, who doesn’t love a soccer game at Geodis or a concert at one of our many fabulous music venues?
Though Nashville is best known for its music, it thrives in visual arts as well. Several years ago Nashville sponsored a public arts project called “Catfish Out of Water”. A few artists friends and I participated by creating “Finnie Pearl”, after the great Minnie Pearl. Finnie was initially installed outside of the Country Music Hall of Fame and now has a permanent home at the Sarah Cannon Cancer Center at Tristar Centennial.
Nashville has always been great place to live and now that our secret is out, we have naturally experienced rapid growth. Meeting new people is great but with growth comes more traffic. So, if there is something I could change about Nashville, it would be fewer potholes and transportation planning.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.pamaustinart.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/pam_austin_artist
