![Kimberlee Palmer Smith, Class of 2017]([{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_1/v1583936191/gcaramsorg/acgzbmdkgot2cpodvkcb/89517480_843586999447500_3948599632644276224_o.jpg","width":256},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_2/v1583936191/gcaramsorg/acgzbmdkgot2cpodvkcb/89517480_843586999447500_3948599632644276224_o.jpg","width":512},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_3/v1583936191/gcaramsorg/acgzbmdkgot2cpodvkcb/89517480_843586999447500_3948599632644276224_o.jpg","width":800},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto,t_image_size_4/v1583936191/gcaramsorg/acgzbmdkgot2cpodvkcb/89517480_843586999447500_3948599632644276224_o.jpg","width":1200},{"url":"https://resources.finalsite.net/images/f_auto,q_auto/v1583936191/gcaramsorg/acgzbmdkgot2cpodvkcb/89517480_843586999447500_3948599632644276224_o.jpg","width":1440}])
"The mission statement for my business is this: when I am at a loss in technique and skill, God is faithful with me still, showing me how to paint His creation. I must give Him all the credit always."
I have been creating ever since I was a little girl, but painting in particular immediately became my favorite. I am so appreciative of Teresa McNelly and Shannon Johnson for cultivating and giving direction for my passion to paint throughout my experience at GCA. In my first high school art class with Shannon Johnson I discovered my ability and love for painting realistic scenes with acrylic paint. Taking Advanced Art and AP art after that first introductory course is what truly helped me develop my abilities and began to give me confidence in my future career as an artist. By God’s grace that is now my career, an artist.
I have worked along side an interior designer providing realism paintings for their clients, I have been mentored to help me learn new techniques in painting, and have had three shows in Old City Knoxville. One was in a gallery on Jackson Avenue and the two others in Awaken Coffee on Jackson Avenue. Most importantly, I have learned that the success is not my own, it’s all by God’s grace alone. Any good gift comes from Him and I have chosen to live my life in remembrance of that and dedicate my business to ministry and praying He might use my paintings for His glory, for the spreading of His Gospel, and the furthering of His kingdom. He has given me a new mindset; I cannot enter my home studio and begin any strokes on a canvas without first dedicating my work to Him and His glory, otherwise it literally turns into a massive mess without fail, every time.
The mission statement for my business is this: when I am at a loss in technique and skill, God is faithful with me still, showing me how to paint His creation. I must give Him all the credit always. He is the giver of our gifts, the author of our lives."