Conversations with Terri Pollack

Today we’d like to introduce you to Terri Pollack.

Hi Terri, so excited to have you on the platform. So before we get into questions about your work-life, maybe you can bring our readers up to speed on your story and how you got to where you are today.
At age five, my parents divorced and sent my sister and me to live with our grandparents. That was when I started making art to help with the trauma of that transition. I decided I wanted to be an artist when I was 7 and have been pursuing it ever since. I graduated from Kansas City Art Institute in ‘96 as a painting major. At the time, I was one class short, so I took a Spanish summer class at Penn Valley Community College to transfer the credits. There was an opportunity to go to Mexico to study Spanish, and I saw that they were also offering a fresco painting workshop. I returned to Xalapa in ‘02 for a more intensive study of fresco painting, creating a mural at the school of languages. I was fortunate to have a studio space at The Arts Incubator from ‘05 to ‘10, Forming some great relationships there and learning more about the art business. I became a member of the Kansas City Artists Coalition in ‘07 when they were doing an open studios program and have been a member ever since. Some of my crowning achievements/collaborations are I participated in La Strada Dell’ Arte, a street painting festival in KC, for several years, beginning in 2008 received an award at the 2018 River Market Regional Exhibition. I have also participated in five different projects with The Sketchbook Project in Brooklyn, including a print exchange and the traveling libraries that have been shown in various cities in the United States, Paris, and London. The Telephone project in 2020 is a collaborative art game displayed online, including over 900 artists and spanning 72 countries. I have been in my current studio in the West Bottoms since 2017. We have open studios twice a year in the fall and the spring.

Would you say it’s been a smooth road, and if not, what are some of the biggest challenges you’ve faced along the way?
I don’t come from wealth, so I’ve had to work hard to keep making art, especially early on. There have been many obstacles, including getting in my way. I am sometimes my worst enemy, having sabotaged many opportunities along the way. There was a time when I had 3 part-time jobs and held back from what felt like taking chances like traveling more, doing residencies, or going to grad school. I also got into a bad relationship with an addict I supported when I could barely take care of myself. Having wizened up, I think these experiences have helped me appreciate how far I’ve come and be thankful for what I have achieved. There is still a way to go. I feel like the journey’s just beginning.

As you know, we’re big fans of you and your work. For our readers who might not be as familiar, what can you tell them about what you do?
I’m a visual artist primarily working in painting, figurative, and portraits. I draw inspiration from several places, including a painting I saw in a gallery at the crossroads, visiting museums, a printmaking workshop, and reviewing some old sketchbooks, images, and other artworks. I participated in several online shows with Beco Gallery and ‘Solar Girl 2020′. During the pandemic, everything went to online zoom meetings, and artists’ talks were done ‘life’ on social media. Many of these images started with doodles of people during zoom meetings or just people I had observed on various social media platforms. So, from quick sketches to paintings and then to prints. I enjoy the back-and-forth conversation between the mediums.

Do you have recommendations for books, apps, blogs, etc.?
I love to read. A couple of my favorite authors are Alice Hoffman and Neil Gaiman 3; of my favorite podcasts that I like are Art Curious, Hidden Brain, and This American Life. Recently I’ve read ‘Circe’ ‘The Silence of the Girls ‘The Women of Troy’ ‘A Spindle Splintered’ ‘Kaikeyi’ and ‘Ariadne’s mythology reimagined or alternate viewpoints of stories.

Pricing:

• Suite of Prints from Portrait series – $300
• 24″ x 18″ , oil paintings $795
• 12″ x 16″, oil paintings $495
• 12″ x 12″ oil paintings $375
• 8″ x 8″ oil paintings $250

Contact Info:

• Website: terripollack.com
• Instagram: @TerriKPollack
• Facebook: terri.k.wheeler
• Other: Tik Tok – @TerriPollack

Image Credits
Head shot by Angie Jennings