We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Sarah Otts a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Sarah, thanks for joining us, excited to have you contributing your stories and insights. What’s been the most meaningful project you’ve worked on?

Meaning is something that cannot go without discussion in an art career. I am a painter of colors for the sake of pretty colors, but without meaning and concept, that’s all it is, “pretty”, but it can go so much further. I think all of my projects have been meaningful, but my “Looking Up” series of paintings and my book, also titled “Looking Up”, have reached people in such personal and beautiful ways. My Looking Up series sprouted from grief. This work came from my own experience of looking up to the beauty of the world around me in order to heal from loss. This perspective awakened my heart to the true meaning of trust, of having hope for tomorrow, and, most of all, the significance of love in this lifetime. This body of work and writing has connected me to people who have been through terrible tragedy; people who needed inspiration, encouragement and perspective to pull through the daunting task of healing. I wasn’t prepared for how much I would encounter gratitude from others. It has truly been a beautiful thing to witness an artistic calling evolve into an expression of love that supports another (even a perfect stranger!) during an especially trying time of loss and pain.

Great, appreciate you sharing that with us. Before we ask you to share more of your insights, can you take a moment to introduce yourself and how you got to where you are today to our readers.

I like to say,“Celebrate everything!”, and that even applies to my work as an artist. My oil paintings are a celebration of creation, a celebration of life, a symbol of gratitude for all the beauty and wonder of the earth and sky. I aim to shine a light on the color of life.

I’ve been a dedicated painter for most of my life. While this is my job, art is also my retreat, my way of finding clarity. The quietness of creative work lets me discover that sense of spiritual wisdom and perspective. In a busy world full of agendas and pretenses, painting restores in me a sense of trust and peace and teaches me to lead a life of purpose. My process has as much to do with a prayerful mindset as it does the materials with which I work. I prefer oil paint for its leniency and willingness to move and build with intentionality. (I quite like those characteristics in general I suppose!) I focus primarily on developing a comfortable balance within the painting’s composition. I devote a large amount of the composition to negative space; this creates an area for the eyes and heart to rest allowing the more active areas of the composition to have greater appreciation. Because, as we know, too much a good thing is not such a good thing—exhausting even. I want to create a painted retreat from the hustle— art that promotes peace and also creative courage in viewers. This is a tender balance; a teeter between two extremes; an elusive challenge and a rewarding achievement.

And when did this all begin? Well, I have no idea… because for as longs I can remember, I have enjoyed making stuff. As a teenager, I began selling my paintings, and to this day making art has been my only job. In 2007, I graduated from Ole Miss with a Fine Arts degree (BFA) with an emphasis in painting. That year I moved back to my hometown, Mobile, AL, and rented a studio where I began working as a full time painter. I spent the next twelve years focused primarily on painting all the while doing a great deal of writing to dig into the concepts of my abstract art. In 2019, I wrote “To Be a Line”, a children’s book about courage, purpose and trust. In August of 2019 I opened Sarah Otts Gallery in Mobile; a home to my many creative endeavors including my “Be a Bright Spot” campaign to further inspire others. Now, after my venture in retail, I have relocated my offices and studio to The Garden, my painting studio, where we invite visitors to make an appointment to visit us and step right into the process.

Back at home, my husband Robert and I have three young children, Lelia, Sonny and Josephine. Through the throes of motherhood I have remained dedicated to my creative work. My attempt to “balance” these two worlds continuously inspires my art and my career choices.

At the end of the day, I paint to get to the truth. Art is about inspiring us to see with honest eyes; to look up and notice beauty; to discover the wonder and artistry in our lives. I am a “noticer” by nature. I was born with noticing eyes. My vision permits me to see what many might miss. Through my work, I hope to inspire others to look up to gifts of creation and, for God’s sake, celebrate everything!

What do you find most rewarding about being a creative?

The privilege of being an artist is the permission to speak the language of the heart. Art speaks to us in ways that the mouth cannot. You know, sometimes it’s simply a color, or maybe it’s a scene that seems to reach out and tap into a memory or an emotion we couldn’t connect to on our own. Art celebrates our deepest truths; it helps us to identify who we truly are at the core, and it calls that version forth. Honesty is the most important part of making art. Sometimes people commend me for being “so vulnerable”, but I don’t think of it that way. It’s just being truthful. Because what is art that isn’t truthful? Dishonest art gets stuck in the material world; it’s the “pictures” we buy because it matches the carpet. That’s not heart art. We get enough falsehood in the media… give the people something real! Give them honest art. Give them something that makes them feel seen and significant.

Can you share a story from your journey that illustrates your resilience?

The way I create a new series does not exactly happen by my own choosing. My topics seem to find me, and then they relentlessly infatuate me until I exercise them out through paint. So when I began my most recent series of paintings, Dream Catching, I had to dig into my reservoir of courage to step up to the easel. These paintings incorporate some deep dark paint colors. It is all about dreaming after all, and when do we do most of our dreaming? At night. The problem is, in the past, I have been known for my vivid “bright” and light paintings. I was risking failure with this new color palette. But I had no choice. These ideas were loaded with inspiration, and I needed to express them. With this new palette, I was afraid I wouldn’t find the sales to support myself, but what I found was a new audience. There were other clients who were drawn to this particular depth of color.

Trusting our inspirations can be tough and intimidating at times. But being artist is about being resilient to expectation and trends. Once again, it’s about being honest with ourselves and expressing what the heart calls on us to express. Inspiration looks for us; it seeks out the courageous; it comes through the ones who are willing to stand apart. And isn’t that the artist’s greatest hope anyway, to stand apart? The question comes down to this: who is willing to step out into the wilderness of a new inspiration? Who has that great creative courage and resiliency? And that’s who inspiration looks for. That is what keeps me going through difficult seasons. That is what keeps me creatively courageous. Despite all of life’s ups and downs, whether personal or professional, as long as we are learning from our past mistakes and staying honest with ourselves, we are continuously moving forward into our next creative adventure. Resiliency is a form of Trust. Walk on, and trust that it is all working together to take us someplace we were made to go.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.sarahotts.com
• Instagram: Sarah_otts_artist
• Pinterest: Sarah Otts artist

Image Credits
Picture of me in pink hat was taken by Chad Riley