The subjects that artist Kathie Odom captures range from homey churches to equipment-filled farms to spring forest glens. What they all have in common is that when she saw these tableaus in real life, they spoke to her. They made her want to delve deeper and know more.
“It wasn’t just a beautiful scene – it was also a story,” she says. “I’m looking for what hits you, what brings it alive. That’s the story.”
Artist Kathie Odom
Odom’s oil paintings, in a style she calls “nostalgic impressionism,” immediately reward a first look and then a second and a third. Odom is currently the subject of a show at The District Gallery in Bearden, at 5113 Kingston Pike. “Kathie Odom: Home for the Season” is on display at the fine art gallery through Dec. 30.
Originally from Jackson, Tenn., she met her husband, Buddy, while at UT, and, except for a seven-year stint in Asheville, the two have lived in Knoxville since. She studied art at UT, taking classes in ceramics, printmaking and art education. “Everything but painting,” she says.
For her 50th birthday, Buddy gifted her with a painting class at the John C. Campbell Folk School in Western North Carolina. When she came back to East Tennessee, she was lucky to find a mentor and teacher in Townsend painter Jeremy Doss.
“Eight years of wonderful” later, as she puts it, she is a successful working artist.
“Carry On,” oil on linen (Courtesy the artist)
“To be 58 and have a new profession is pretty exciting,” Odom says. “My art is a really sweet thing in my life, and to be able to share it is so much fun.”
Before she began painting, she had worked as a faux finisher, toiling indoors, and it’s now more difficult for her to stay cooped up with her oils. She prefers working “en plein air,” taking her paints and easel and canvas outside and painting a scene directly from life.
Her work has been exhibited and honored from coast to coast, and her originals and giclée prints are represented at several galleries. For the last five years, she has been traveling all over the country for workshops and exhibits. She was even invited to Italy to paint with other notable plein air painters.
When she paints on location, she inevitably attracts curious bystanders, whether she is in Cades Cove or an Italian city square. She says she was initially self-conscious about being observed but now takes it as part of the craft.
“It’s taught me as much about people as it has about painting,” she says.
Odom has teaching events coming up, including a nine-session mentoring program that runs from January to March. Info: www.kathieodom.com.
For more information about The District Gallery, visit www.thedistrictgallery.com or call 865-200-4452.
