Today we’d like to introduce you to Pam White
Hi Pam, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstory.
I am an artist. I began my “art journey” in traditional acrylic and oil paints later evolving to encaustic. Encaustic painting is an ancient form of art using organic beeswax, damar tree resin and raw pigment. The wax is applied to a canvas and fused with a torch.
At first, my friends and clients were wary of this different technique, but when they saw the natural glow of the wax and the translucent colors, they began to share my obsession.
I had a tiny reception in a small homegoods store and it gained momentum. I also put some of my art in a popular ladies boutique. It didn’t gain sales but it made my work more recognizable. During covid, I was the volunteer director of an outdoor monthly art market in Sea Pines. I tried to help artists who were unable to show in galleries due to Covid. The monthly event brought a lot of attention to our local artist community. After that I joined the Grand Bohemian Gallery in Charleston. I have had many shows and openings there. I paint live in their courtyard a couple times each year. It’s an amazing venue and I am thrilled to be a part of it. The more people collected my art, the more I was inspired to change up what I was doing—I dug deeper. I added extra elements into my wax, I began incorporating fabrics. I’ve learned to build up texture of up to 3” off the canvas. I like explaining my process so that people can understand their investment in my work. It’s an exciting time and I’m enjoying the journey!
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?
I can’t imagine there is a smooth road for any artist. It’s one of the few professions where you’re an entrepreneur, a finance manager, a talented forecaster and a creative. I can made beautiful art all day long but the challenge is understanding how to create art that’s just a bit different than it was the year before, a bit more refined. I wake up dreaming of ideas that I want to immediately “take to the canvas”. I paint primarily outdoors so the temperature and conditions need to be perfect. I have to carefully manage my time. It’s a lot.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
As an encaustic artist I primarily work on large wood canvases. My subjects are mainly an abstraction of coastal life…. So, instead of a traditional beach, I’ll paint a close up of the inside of a wave. Or instead of painting a marsh I’ll paint a textural grass piece.
Im proud to be in a heavily saturated art market and rising to the top. I’m proud of of myself for continuing to develop new processes, being original. A person I have tremendous respect for stopped in my studio recently and said “wow, I’m always shocked that every year your work is totally different, it’s never just the same style”. When she said this, she nailed it!!! I’m constantly challenging myself to see how wax reacts when I add different textures, or different ratios. My creative thought process works faster than I can produce art-that’s a good thing!!
Any advice for finding a mentor or networking in general?
That’s a fun question. My mentors are my immediate family members. My husband runs his own business. One of my sons works in a large corporation and the other is an entrepreneur. I don’t run my artistic ideas by them as much as my business struggles. I wouldn’t be where I am today without their support. I have a small group of artists I keep in contact with on a regular basis. But I also have entrepreneurial friends that mentor and inspire me.
My work is in three different galleries and I appreciate the gallery managers critique, and input. What may sell in one region may not gain interest in another so their input is extremely important.
Pricing:
- – develop a square inch price and stick to it
- – do NOT discount. Your buyers will NEVER respect your talent
- – charge tax.
- -charge credit card fee… why would you incur this fee?
Contact Info:
- Website: https://pjwhiteart.com
- Instagram: @pamwhite3
